Saving your life
by lilmisblack
Summary: When Hermione is captured by Death Eaters, Severus knows there's only one way to save her. 'What are you doing? ' she asked, her voice shaky. 'Saving your life,' he said, just as he started kissing her neck. Ch 64 up!
1. saving your life

She woke up feeling her head throbbing. Her whole body ached. She tried to move but found she was tied to the wall. She looked around but it was too dark to see anything. Fear paralyzed her as she remembered what had happened and she wondered why she was still alive.

After that terrible night only a few weeks ago, there had been three Order meetings. The first one just after the funeral, but everyone was still too shocked to do anything. The second one had taken place in London, in what seemed to be an abandoned house, but only on the outside. It was there where most of the members were staying, since Grimmauld Place wasn't safe anymore, especially now with Snape on the other side. He knew all the secrets of the Order, and now he didn't need to be careful, to avoid suspicion. Not anymore.

On that second meeting, that lasted barely a couple of hours, they clearly avoided that subject. Some may not have entirely trusted Snape before, but they were still too shocked about what he had done. Fortunately, they had other spies, but none as close to the enemy as him. They had been informed that someone in the Ministry was working for Voldemort, but they didn't know who it was. They agreed to investigate further, and that was all they discussed. Harry had decided not to tell anyone about the Horcruxes. The three of them were leaving for Godric's Hollow in just a few days to try to find them.

The third and last meeting had been that very afternoon, but she had never gotten there. She was on her way, when she saw him with another wizard, both hiding their faces, trying to move anonymously through the street. Hearing him speak, even in whispers, was enough to know who it was. That drawl was unmistakable, just like his son's.

She hid her own face with her cloak and moved to follow them as they left Diagon Alley and entered Muggle-London. They kept walking and so did she, leaving enough space between them to avoid being seen. Muggles kept staring at them, but they didn't seem to care. More than ten minutes had passed and nothing had changed. She hoped they were headed for their quarters, thinking how the Order could use the information. Maybe they could attack them by surprise or…

She looked around, suddenly feeling alarmed. She had been so lost in her thoughts she hadn't even realized the two men were nowhere to be seen. She was all alone now, in the middle of a deserted park. Something inside told her she had been a fool, following Death Eaters around London on her own. Worst of all, she hadn't once wondered why they hadn't just Apparated.

A cold laugh behind her told her where the two men were, but she didn't even have time to draw her wand. A flash of red light and everything went black.

She first came to when she hit the floor. They had finally Apparated and they had taken her with them. She was lying in what seemed to be a huge room, surrounded by at least a dozen Death Eaters. Even though they were wearing their masks and she couldn't see their faces, she could tell they were surprised to see her there. Maybe that's why they hadn't attacked her yet. They were looking at her and speaking with each other, some of them laughing, and she was just too scared to notice one of them hurriedly leaving the room.

The first spell hit her and she gasped for breath. She started feeling dizzy just as it was lifted. They started howling with laughter and at least another four spells hit her. Now her body was covered in deep cuts, blood everywhere. Their laughter grew even lauder as silent tears covered her face, but she wouldn't scream, she would never beg for mercy.

Suddenly the room fell silent. The Death Eaters parted and she saw a hooded figure approaching her. All she could see of him were two red eyes and a wand pointing at her. He muttered something she couldn't understand and then darkness took her.

So now here she was, tied to the wall but still alive. She struggled to free her hands but it was impossible. She could tell the wounds on her body had been healed, and instead of being relieved, she felt terrified. What could they ever want from her to be keeping her alive?

Then the room filled with light as the door opened and a dark figure stepped in.

"Couldn't wait another day to see me, could you?"

She could have recognized that voice anywhere, she had heard it so many times over the last six years, but there was something scary about his tone. She opened her mouth to retort, but the look in his eyes stopped her, and she just stayed still, watching him approach her. He stopped just a few inches from her, his body so close they were almost touching. Suddenly he wrapped his arms around her waist and at the same time, he buried his face in her hair. He could feel her tense under his touch, and before she had time to say anything he whispered in her ear, so low she could barely hear him.

"Play along, they're watching."

"What are you doing," she asked, her voice shaky.

"Saving your life," he said, just as he started kissing her neck.


	2. think fast

He was walking down the hall when he heard the first noises. He entered the room and looked around with interest. He knew there weren't many things that could make his fellow Death Eaters sound so excited.

They were standing in a circle, looking down and laughing hard. He walked closer and poked his head to see what was there. It took him a few seconds to recognize the figure lying on the floor; his brain kept telling him it was impossible. His former student, Hermione Granger, friend of the famous Harry Potter, was there, curled up, looking scared and confused, so different from the little know-it-all he'd seen in his classes. He was glad he was wearing his mask, or his expression would have given him away in an instant.

She didn't look harmed, but that would change any minute. He had to act fast.

He turned around and left the room without being noticed. He knew what he had to do, but it would be hard and dangerous.

He almost ran to the other end of the manor, along dark corridors covered in paintings of famous pureblooded wizards, and only stopped when he reached a large door painted in black and green, a silver snake in the centre. The few minutes it had taken him to get there had been hardly enough to come up with a good plan, but he thought he had found a way to save her and still seem loyal to the cause.

He knocked on the door and waited for it to open. The Dark Lord was alone in his studio, reading a book that looked about to fall to pieces. He barely looked up when he entered the room, but he knew he was listening. It was hard, but making use of all of his persuasion, he managed to convince his Master to stop the others from hurting her, at least until he had time to explain everything. He knew he trusted him enough to act before he got a complete explanation, but still he didn't want to push his luck.

They walked in silence all the way back to the other room. He stayed a few steps behind, hoping she was still alive and at the same time going through every step of his plan in his mind once more.

The voices could be heard long before they reached the place. Luckily, at least in this case, those men enjoyed playing. They made their killings last as long as they could.

All noises died out as soon as they saw their Master enter the room and, bowing, they parted, allowing him to walk towards the girl lying on the floor. She looked up at him, a mixture of fear and relief on her face. She was clearly in pain, every visible inch of her skin covered in blood. Without a word, he pointed his wand at her. Her eyes opened wide and then she fainted.

"Heal her wounds and take her to the black room," was all he said before turning around and walking back to his studio, closely followed by Snape.

Voldemort sat once more on the same chair, only this time his eyes where locked on him. He felt him trying to enter his mind and decided it was better to start explaining.

"A few months ago I realized that, if everything went according to plan and Dumbledore was killed, knowing it would probably be me doing the killing, the members of the Order would know I had been spying _on _and not _for_ them, that I had remained a faithful Death Eater. Still, I thought it would be useful to have a spy among the enemy, even after Dumbledore's death. It would be too hard for someone on our side to become a member, as it would take too long. It would have to be someone they already trusted. I analysed the possibilities and chose the one who seemed to be the weaker prey. Apparently, it was the right choice.

The know-it-all, the bookworm, the one who only knew life through what she read, would prove to be easy to influence. Her mind might be sharp, but she had no command over her emotions, like most girls that age. The safest way to control her would be to seduce her, much better than any spell. If she believed that she loved me, she would do anything I asked. I could have laughed at how easy she was to manipulate. Just look inside her mind, tell her what she wanted to hear, what she needed to hear, and she was ready. Of course, I made sure it was kept a secret; she would be of no use to us otherwise.

So the night came when I killed the old fool, my Lord, and even then, she believed in my innocence. We talked a few days later and I assured her I was still loyal to the Order, that Dumbledore had planned the whole thing. I told her I couldn't yet explain it to the other members, so she would have to help me until then. She was to tell me everything that was said during their meetings. She was only too happy to comply. We met a few times afterwards, but she couldn't give me much useful information. Apparently, everyone was still too shocked with what had happened, and they weren't doing much.

During the years I worked with them I suspected they had at least one other spy among your Death Eaters, but I never managed to discover who it was, and that is why I hadn´t said anything about this before, as I was afraid the spy would discover it and I would lose my potential informant.

It would seem the girl's hormones took over tonight and she foolishly tried to find me. I asked you, my Lord, to keep her alive because she might me very useful for us, and perhaps a way to regain my position as a member of the Order in time. So now, Master, if you believe I was wrong in my decisions I will accept any punishment you shall see fit. But if, on the contrary, you think I did right and we should continue to use her in order to get information, I must ask you to keep the others away from her, to let me be the only one who talks to her, or else she might suspect my loyalties."

It had taken so long for the answer to come that he was beginning to think his Master might just be imagining the best way to torture and kill them both, but when he finally spoke, it was to tell him to go on with his plan. It had been an idea worthy of his most faithful Death Eater, he said, but he knew his Master well enough by now to know he didn't entirely believe it. He had to find a way to convince him, to regain his trust, and there was only one thing he could do.

He opened the door and saw her. She was chained to the wall, her clothes red from the blood, but the cuts were gone. He knew she had recognized him the moment he spoke, but her eyes widened when she saw his face; he was trying to let her know with his eyes that she should remain silent as he approached her. They were standing so close he could feel her breath on his skin, and when she asked him what he was doing, he just told her the truth, he was saving her life.

With his hands on her hips, he leaned forwards to kiss her neck. She just seemed too shocked to speak. After a few seconds, he took a step back and, with a flick of his wand, cleaned her skin and clothes, removing the dried blood. He then buried his hand on her bushy hair and slowly pushed her against the wall. Now that their bodies were touching, he could feel how tense she was. He moved his face closer, their lips almost touching, and looked right into her eyes. Confusion hadn't left her, but there was something else too, deep down. It shocked him to see it was trust. He tried to look deeper inside her mind but she blocked him. Apparently, she had been learning Occlumency.

He tentatively reached for her lips, a light brush to see her reaction and give her time to get used to the idea. He felt her body shake slightly under his hands, but still she didn't move.

The kiss was soft and slow at first, both staring at each other, but he knew that wasn't enough, so he carefully parted her lips with his tongue and finally saw her close her eyes and return the kiss. His hands moved down the sides of her body as his tongue explored her mouth, trying to make the kiss more passionate. When he slid his hands under her shirt she froze, her eyes opened again in a questioning look. His lips left hers and he whispered softly in her ear,

"Trust me, it's the only way."

Her body seemed to relax under his touch and, with his face still buried on the curve of her neck, his fingers started drawing small circles up and down her legs, his touch so soft it almost tickled. Her head fell back when he reached her inner thigh and he thought she was ready for the next step. Soon his lips were once more on hers as he slipped his fingers inside her underwear. Even if it was almost a play, performed by two people who didn't even like each other, and for the sole purpose of staying alive, their bodies were responding to each other, moving on their own accord. He pushed her harder against the wall with his body and heard a soft moan. He wasn't sure who had made it. The sound of chains startled them both as she tried to move her arms. They had forgotten all about them.

"I think we could leave them on a little longer," he said with a sneer. Just playing my part, he told himself. He didn't sound convinced though.

She didn't answer, she just covered his mouth with hers on a probing kiss, feeling his arousal matching her own. He couldn't wait any longer, and in a matter of seconds he had removed her underwear and unzipped his trousers. He lifted her legs and placed them around his waist, never breaking the kiss.

He entered her slowly, trying hard not to hurt her. She was so tight, he had to concentrate to keep control. He stood still inside of her until he felt her muscles relax, and only then did he start moving. He stopped kissing her and looked into her eyes. A look of surprise and one of excitement mixed on her face, probably the same look she could see on his. The pace was calm at first, but soon urge made them move faster, the moans becoming louder. For what seemed like hours they stayed like this, their bodies moving against each other, their lips melting together once more, until he felt her muscles tense again, only this time it was from pleasure. The scream that left her mouth and died in his was enough to push him over the edge as well, and only out of exhaustion did they stop moving.

Without another word, he took a step back and released her arms from the chains. He quickly zipped his pants and, without looking in her eyes, he took her hand and Apparated on a dark street near Diagon Alley. A loud crack told them they weren't alone.

He kissed her passionately once more, but only for a second, just long enough to slide a piece of parchment inside her pocket, and then he turned around and Apparated on the manor again.

He had done everything in his power to make it look real, it almost felt real, and he hoped that had been enough to convince his Master. He knew it wouldn't be the last time. Now they thought she was spying for the Dark Lord, they would keep an eye on them both.

He headed for his Master's studio once more, knowing what he would ask of him and deep inside wondering when he would see her again.


	3. don't speak

He just left her there, in the middle of a Muggle street and so weak she could barely move. She thought about calling someone to help her but something told her it would be better if no one in the Order knew what had happened; she wasn't even sure she knew herself. There was only one way to get out of there. She looked around to make sure no one would see her and Apparated by headquarters' door.

She took a deep breath, opened the door and, hoping she wouldn't be found, crept noiselessly up the stairs to her bedroom.

Her mind was a blur, images of the last few hours kept coming back and she started feeling dizzy.

She slowly walked over to her bathroom and magically filled the tub in just a few seconds. She took off her clothes and threw them by the door.

The hot water surrounded her body, relaxing her aching muscles and washing away the bad memories. Soon the images flowing in her mind were rather different.

She just couldn't believe what she had just done. Was it true what he had said, that he was saving her life? She had believed it then for some reason, but now, after she was back there, safe, she saw the whole thing through a very different angle.

Was he just playing with her mind, trying to get her so confused they would find a way to use her against the ones she loved?

Through the years they had suspected Snape so many times, and every single one they had been wrong. Was there something about Dumbledore's death they didn't know yet? Something they couldn't understand?

She had seen it in his eyes; he had seemed concerned, and had sounded truthful when saying he was trying to help her. She was still alive, wasn't she? He had even healed her wounds. That had to mean something, right?

The truth was she had never seen him that way, as a man rather than just a teacher. Still, her body had reacted to every touch; after the first shock had worn off, she had responded to him without even thinking, and now she could feel her heart beat faster at just the thought of him. It made her feel like a silly girl.

Suddenly she heard a sound that startled her and she opened her eyes. She must have dozed off with those thoughts on her mind. She looked around, suddenly scared again, trying to find the source of the noise.

It was coming from where she'd left her clothes; it was like a scratch, from a quill on paper. She stepped out of the tub and wrapped herself in a towel. She reached for her robes and noticed they felt warm to the touch. Inside one of the inner pockets, she found a piece of parchment. It went cold the moment she touched it, and words appeared on it, a single line at first: 'Are you alright?'

She hesitated, not knowing what this was about, but after a few seconds, another line replaced the first one. 'Are you hurt?'

She reached for a quill of her own and wrote down two words 'Professor Snape?' although there was not need to ask, she knew that handwriting well enough.

'Yes,' and then 'Are you hurt?'

'I don't think so.'

'I believe you deserve an explanation, but I can't give you one, at least not with all the facts. What I can tell you is this…'

The words kept appearing, only one or two lines replaced over and over again, and she had to concentrate hard just to read them before they were gone.

'I had to tell the Dark Lord you were working for us so you wouldn't be killed. They were to think I had seduced you and you were now spying for me.

He wasn't inclined to believe this, and so I had to convince him I was telling the truth. Had you done anything to stop me earlier tonight we would both be dead by now.'

The words vanished and a few seconds passed, but she couldn't write anything.

'Still, I'm afraid this isn't over yet. They will expect you to provide information about the Order and they'll probably follow me almost everywhere. We will have to meet again, and they will be there. Do you understand this?'

'Yes,' she wrote, the quill shaking in her hand.

A small map appeared then on the parchment, and instructions next to it.

'You are to Apparate there at 8 o'clock three days from now. You will find a small cabin half a mile south from there. Go inside and wait for me.

This parchment will be destroyed in a few minutes, make sure you will remember where to go and don't be late.'

She stared at the parchment even after memorizing the map, and a few minutes later it turned into blue flames and consumed itself.

How she managed to pretend nothing was wrong in front of her friends she never knew. Maybe they were just too busy to notice.

During the day, there was always something to do; someone to talk to, but alone at night, images of everything that had happened would suddenly come back full force.

The first night it was the masked men around her, hurting her and laughing, and she woke up drenched in sweat and trembling, too scared to fall back to sleep.

The two nights that followed, however, the memories were quite different. She would feel his touch against her skin, his lips on her neck, his body close to hers, and once awake she felt even more confused than before, but for some reason not afraid.

The third morning, she woke just as the sun was rising and couldn't go back to sleep, so she went to the kitchen and waited for the others to wake up. When everyone was there and their breakfast on the table, she just stared down at her plate, unable to eat, and was so distracted she started to draw attention to herself.

She spent the day in the library, pretending to read even when she knew she couldn't concentrate on anything for more than two seconds, but it was the best place to be if one didn't want to be bothered. So the hours went by and soon the sky was dark again.

She hadn't eaten all day, but couldn't bring herself to it, and after telling everyone she was too tired and just wanted to go to bed, she walked up the stairs, grabbed a cloak, and, after whispering a few spells to make sure no one would notice her absence, she went back downstairs and silently left the place.

It was still too early when she Apparated in the woods, but she couldn't wait any longer. She found the cabin just where he had said it would be and entered. It was empty but for a table and a broken wooden chair.

She found a fireplace and lit a small fire, more to give herself something to do than because she was cold. She sat on the floor and stared at the flames, keeping her mind empty of thoughts.

A loud pop brought her back to reality, and she stood up, startled. She made to walk to the window, but had only taken a few steps when she felt a strong arm around her waist, pulling her back against his body.

"Don't speak," he whispered in her ear as he pulled her closer

She felt his lips on her neck, his hand slowly undoing just a few buttons from her shirt and sliding inside. She closed her eyes and gasped when she felt the contact of his fingers. Were they always that cold? Their touch against her warm skin sent shivers through her body. She felt his other hand slowly moving towards her skirt, playing with the waistband, his mouth nibbling her earlobe.

She opened her eyes and stiffened when she saw a face peering through the window, a glint in those eyes that made her breath catch He must have sensed it, for he stopped moving and said

"I told you they'd follow me. Forget about him," he said resuming his ministrations.

She forced her eyes shut again, and soon her body was responding to his touch, even more than before. She leaned back against him and moaned when she felt his fingers slipping under the skirt, inside her underwear. Everything else was long forgotten.

During these last days, she had almost convinced herself their encounter had never really happened, that she had just imagined it, probably out of shock from being trapped and almost killed by Death Eaters. Now, he was there again, and his touch felt so familiar, so good. It just felt right. For the second time in her life, her brain was no longer in charge, and her body was moving on its own accord.

She felt one hand caressing her breast, just as the other one found her clit and started rubbing. Her hips ground back against his and she heard him moan. Just as one of his fingers moved down and slowly entered her she heard him talking, but she couldn't pay any attention.

"Miss Granger," she heard "Miss Granger," but in her mind, it sounded just like a buzz. It was her first name leaving his lips that finally got her attention.

"Wh…ahhh…what?" She managed to reply through her dry throat.

"I need you to hear me, you have to concentrate. Can you do that?"

After a few seconds, she just nodded her head in response, lips parted and breathing hard from all the pleasure he was giving her.

"This is important," he whispered in her ear, yet his fingers never stopped moving. "There's someone at the Ministry; he's passing information to the Dark Lord. Important information. I don't know his name, but I believe he is an Auror. I've only seen him once; he has a jagged scar across his face, on the left side. Someone from the Order must stop him, but you can't let them know how you got this information. This has to remain a secret. Do you understand?"

She buried her hands on his hair and pulled him closer, his lips making contact with her neck again, and the yes she cried out was an answer to his question as much as it was to his touch.

He didn't make her beg; he knew what she needed and gave it to her. She couldn't help moaning, her body shuddering with every touch, her hips grinding uncontrollably.

The hand on her breast suddenly stopped caressing, the whole arm wrapping itself around her waist just as her knees buckled, keeping her from falling. She felt her muscles tense, trapping his fingers inside of her as she screamed in pleasure.

After a moment she felt she had recovered some strength, her breathing going back to normal, and, still feeling his erection against her thigh, her hand left his hair and snaked around, touching him, trying to return some of the pleasure he had just given her. The moment he felt it he gasped and pulled back.

She turned around and saw a look of confusion on his face. He just whispered "I have to go, and you should leave too," but neither moved. A few seconds passed in silence and then he took a step forwards, placing a soft kiss on her neck as he said "Make sure Potter doesn't leave London for the next few weeks," and with that he vanished.

She stood still, trying to make sense of what had just happened, when she heard something move outside the cabin. She glanced back towards the window and saw those eyes again, with the spark in them that made her uneasy.

Their eyes locked a few seconds and then fear took over and she Apparated by headquarters once more, running inside where she would feel safe.

All the lights were out already, everyone in bed, and she made her way up to her room careful not to make any noise that would wake them up.

She lay on her bed, her clothes still on, and a smile across her lips that even fear couldn't erase. She didn't understand why she was smiling, but she just couldn't help herself.


	4. out on a mission

What on earth was wrong with him?

He had been pacing around the empty room for almost an hour now, and still he couldn't calm down. All his life he had been in control of his mind and body, but now this situation, this girl… it was just different. In his world different usually meant bad.

He had learnt to always think before acting, avoiding any feeling he couldn't easily hide. He needed to keep his mind closed to everyone else, and it was getting harder by the minute.

The first time he hadn't given it much thought. He knew he had done the only possible thing to get them both out of there alive. It had felt good, of course, but that didn't mean anything. Yes, he had thought about her after that night, but what had happened had been purely physical.

She was his former student, some twenty years younger than him. She had been scared and acted on instinct. What on earth was wrong with him?

He still couldn't help his thoughts.

He had tried to find a way to keep her out of it, but he needed to pass information to the Order, and the only way to do that was through her. Then there was the fact that the Dark Lord thought she was with him. He had asked him at least twice after the first night if he had seen her, if he had learnt any important bit of information. He also had Death Eaters following him everywhere day and night, and they were probably keeping an eye on her too, so there was no way he could just fake the meeting.

It wasn't as if he wanted to see her again, of course not, but he had to. He had contacted her that first night and arranged a new meeting, but always on the hope he would be able to cancel it later on. No such luck.

Truth was he had been shocked to find her there; maybe he had thought she would just stay away from him, not leaving the safety of the Order's quarters; it would probably be the smart thing to do. Still, deep inside, he was glad she had gone; he longed to feel that soft skin against his own again, and the moment their bodies touched, it had taken everything he had to stay in control of himself.

Hearing her moans, feeling her body tremble at his touch, he couldn't remember having experienced anything so arousing before. His mouth had gone dry, his voice hoarse when he had told her what he needed to say, his fingers always giving her pleasure, teasing, knowing how hard she was trying to concentrate on his words.

Then she had touched him, and he had pulled away knowing he would completely lose control of himself if he didn't. His whole body ached with the desire to touch her, and he knew if he started, he wouldn't be able to stop. He couldn't afford that kind of behaviour.

A part of him was screaming he should just stay away from her, while the other part was already planning a pretext to see her again. What on earth was wrong with him?

The meeting was about to start, he could already hear voices outside the room, and he took a deep breath, calming down and closing his mind further.

They sat around the table, all wearing their masks and waiting for their Master to enter. It took about two hours for everyone to talk, discussing future plans and sharing the details of their activities since they'd last met, and he had to sink his nails on the palm of his hands to stay focused on it, thinking maybe he could gather some useful information. When the meeting was over the Dark Lord asked him to follow him to his studio once more.

He knew he had to tell him something, and so he did

"The girl said they're planning on going back to Grimmauld Place, but there's no Fidelius charm protecting it. They haven't yet decided when they'll move. That's all she knew."

It wouldn't be wise to make up much more until he had a plan and so he muttered an excuse and quickly left for Spinners End.

He could smell the brewing potion from outside the door, and as he entered, he cursed under his breath. He was tired, but he knew he had to add a few ingredients that very night.

After a few hours, he finally went to bed, but found he couldn't sleep. Just like the last few night he would see images of that girl whenever he closed his eyes. He got up and went to sit on his couch, by the fireplace. Maybe some firewhisky would help him out.

Soon his senses were numb from the drinking, but watching the fire, he kept thinking about her, about what it had felt like to touch her. All of a sudden he was imagining what would have happened if he had let her touch him in return. He could almost feel her hands on him.

He closed his eyes and pictured her lying on the floor under his body. He didn't even notice his own fingers slowly unbuttoning his robes.

He groaned when his hand grazed his growing erection through the fabric, just as he saw her in his mind's eye wrapping her legs around his waist.

Slipping his fingers inside his underwear he softly rubbed his length imagining it was her hand and stifled another groan. He closed his fingers around his now aching erection and stroked, slowly at first but soon gaining speed, now picturing her moving against him and writhing in pleasure.

He bit his lower lip just as he started buckling his hips, moaning quietly; he didn't last long, and the moment he came back down from his orgasm his eyes shot open in shock.

He got up and went to his bathroom, quickly jumping under the shower, the cold water making him shiver and at the same time calming his body down.

He couldn't believe what he had just done, after days of trying to control himself. This would only make everything harder; he would have to focus even more to keep her out of his mind around his Master.

Well, that was it. He'd have to find a way to keep her away from all this, and away from him. He would find another way to pass information, and he would never have to see her again. This was definitely the best thing to do.

It was with that on his mind that he went back to bed, finally falling asleep only to wake up with another hard on.

The next night went by almost like the first one, and on the second one, he woke up when he felt his arm ache. He pulled up his sleeve to find the Dark Mark black and burning on his skin.

In only a few minutes, he was dressed and standing in front of his Master, along with most Death Eaters. They had a mission, he explained.

One of his spies at the Ministry had been captured, and he needed to be replaced. They were to go to London and break into a few selected houses. Once put under the Imperius curse they should leave their residents there, ready for instructions.

Needless to say, if any target fought the curse they were to kill them. It was a good thing not many wizards could fight against it.

It was dark outside when they left, masked and silent, walking together. With a single POP, they found themselves in London, and parted into three groups.

He walked, along with another half a dozen men, towards a small house just a few feet away. The door flew open with a loud bang and they entered wands at the ready.

The witch and wizard living there had been awoken by the intruders, and were given no time to react.

The screams from the Cruciatus filled the room, but the silencing spells kept everyone outside the house from hearing them. He let a few minutes pass, laughing with them, and then suggested they should just put the Imperius on them and leave before someone found them. Although reluctantly they agreed, and one of them cast the curse and then left them unconscious lying on the floor as they went back outside the house to join the other groups.

He knew it would happen; whenever they went on missions like this they lost control of themselves, and that night was no exception.

The first one was a Muggle man walking down their street, but soon a few more joined him. They kept them floating over their heads as they looked for more Muggles to torture.

He couldn't stay there anymore. He was tired of it; tired of pretending to be the same man he had once been, years ago.

He wasn't a good man, of that there was no doubt; he still thought he was better than most people, still believed in the importance of wizarding blood, of the family one belonged to. He was mean and often even cruel to people, and enjoyed making most of them feel bad, but he no longer found torturing Muggles a form of entertainment. He wasn't like them, but he wasn't so different either.

He just didn't care about what they were doing. He couldn't stop them, so there was no need to stay. He took part on some of it, did just what was expected of him, and then turned around and left. He knew they wouldn't even notice, they were having such a good time.

He first went to Spinner's End, but then remembered he had left his potions book at headquarters, and he needed it to continue the potion he was brewing. He sighed in frustration and Apparated there.

It was strange to find the place so empty, there were usually people around all day, but now he knew only the Dark Lord was left.

He walked to the library careful not to make any noise. He didn't feel like explaining himself if his Master found him there, and he definitely didn't want to have another lovely chat with him.

The room was dark and empty, and he lit his wand as he approached the desk he had been working on earlier. He went through the books trying to find the one he needed and saw a scroll of parchment he knew wasn't there at the time he had left. It had his name written on it.

He pulled it open over the table and frowned when he saw it was blank. He had a bad feeling about it, and he had learnt to trust his instincts long ago.

After a few seconds, he touched it with his wand and whispered some words. The paper remained empty. He tried a second spell, and then a third, and finally, after the fourth one words appeared on its surface. A quick glance was enough to drain his face of all colour, and he put the roll in his pocket as he ran to the door.

There was a reason why he had burnt the parchment he had used to talk to Granger. It was dead useful to communicate, but if found a powerful wizard would soon find a way to reveal what had been written before.

The one who had left it among his things had known he would find it and read it; they were playing with him, mocking. Still, he wasn't supposed to go back there until the next morning; he had found it sooner than expected, so maybe he still had time to do something.

Once he left headquarters and was far enough from the wards, he Apparated on the woods once more. He could see light inside the cabin and run, wand in hand and expecting the worse.

He opened the door and stood there, panting and taking in the scene in front of him.

A tall man, dressed in black robes and wearing a Death Eater's mask was standing inside, his back to him as he fought to keep Granger under control.

She had one of his hands around her neck, keeping her pinned to the wall as the other one was pointing his wand at her. Her face was bloody and swollen, her lips parted as she fought for breath. Her feet were dangling in the air and her nails buried on her attacker's arms, drawing blood as she tried to defend herself.

He could hear his cold laugh as he tightened his grasp, choking her. "This is what you get for messing with us. I couldn't kill you the first time, but you're not getting away now."

He took a deep breath, regaining his composure and pointed his wand at the man as he said calmly

"You shouldn't be doing that, Lucius."


	5. knight in shining armour

She stopped struggling when she heard his voice and turned her face to look at him, standing by the door, his expression as calm as ever and yet his wand pointing towards Malfoy's back.

"Severus, how kind of you to join us. I must admit, however, that I wasn't expecting you yet. You are a bit early."

Suddenly she felt safe again; looking in his eyes, she knew he wouldn't let him kill her. Her face must have betrayed some of her relief, because Malfoy, who hadn't taken his eyes off her, laughed out loud

"Oh dear, how very lovely indeed! You think he's come to your rescue, don't you? Your knight in shining armour. You actually believe you have fooled him into caring for you!"

He finally took off his mask and turned around to face Snape, not loosening his grip on her.

"Well, Severus, you must be a really good actor! You certainly looked convincing enough right here just a few nights ago."

"Let her go, Lucius, you know the Dark Lord's orders on this matter."

He stiffened for a second, but then turned back towards her and let her down just until her feet touched the ground, his wand always pointing at her. He took a step closer, his lips just inches from her ear as he whispered

"Let me tell you something, girl. He's the one that's fooled you, can't you see? Why would any wizard, especially a Death Eater, ever care for a little mudblood like you?"

"Lucius," Snape said warningly

"Don't worry, Severus, it doesn't matter anymore, she's not going anywhere."

"You do know what will happen if you kill her, don't you? The Dark Lord ordered his followers to stay away from her, what do you think he'll do if he finds you've disobeyed?"

The hand on her neck tightened, Lucius' face contorted with rage as he turned around, looking at Snape once more

"You think I don't know what you're doing? Trying to get all the glory for yourself, just as you did when you killed Dumbledore, right? That should've been for my son, for my family. You won't do it again."

"So that's what this is about then. Maybe you should discuss my involvement on that death with your lovely wife, I'm sure you will hear some interesting facts."

"I don't care what you have to say, I will make sure the Dark Lord sees you for what you really are. He calls you his most faithful Death Eater when all you do is play around pretending your work is important. You're not better than I am!"

"If the Lord treats you the way he does is because you failed him, you failed to retrieve the prophecy, you got yourself landed on Azkaban and he had to send others to get you out. Your son failed to kill Dumbledore when he had the chance. If I hadn't helped him escape, revealing my role as a spy because of it, he would be dead by now and you know it."

They were almost yelling now, pointing each other with their wands, and she was terrified for herself and for some reason she was scared for Snape too. He was risking himself for helping her, no matter what Malfoy said.

He finally let go of her and she fell to the floor. She yelled as she felt the pain on her ribs. She looked back at the two men in front of her and noticed a worried look on Snape's eyes as they met hers. Then he went back to facing Malfoy just as he lifted his wand and whispered a curse. Snape moved his wand and deflected it easily.

"Come on, Lucius, you can do better than that and we both know it. But perhaps you should reconsider your actions, your Master won't be happy when he learns you tried to attack me."

She gasped when a new flash of light erupted from his wand. This time the spell pushed Snape a few feet backwards before he finally stopped it; and now he shot back.

Her jaw dropped as she saw the two of them duelling. They were moving around the cabin, their wands a blur as sets of light crossed the room, spells and curses hitting the walls and occasionally one of them. She had never seen anything like it.

The minutes passed and she could see anger and exhaustion on both their faces; suddenly Malfoy's sleeve cough fire, and the moment he turned his face and tried to extinguish it a purple light shot from Snape's wand directly to him.

He had to jump to the side to avoid it, and the spell finally hit the wall behind him, mere inches from her head. She screamed in fear when part of the wall blew so close to her head and looked at Snape. Their eyes met for only a second, but it was enough for Malfoy, who aimed his wand once more at him and finally hit him.

She watched as he was thrown against a wall, his body hitting the surface and his wand flying from his hand. He was held there, arms and legs pinned to the wall, as Malfoy took a few steps closer, stopping when their bodies were almost touching.

"Well, it seems the little mudblood here helped me more than she would have wanted."

"Stop this," Snape whispered "or I'll have to erase her memories after I'm done with you."

She heard Malfoy give a hearty laugh as he said in a loud voice

"Done with me? Oh, please, look at you, you can't even move, what do you think you can do to me?"

"Lucius, I'm warning you, even if I couldn't do much, you'll make the Lord angry, and in your position, we both know what will happen."

She could tell Malfoy was hesitant, but still she wasn't surprised when he yelled Crucio, and suddenly the whole place was filled with screams. She saw her former teacher, trapped against the wall, crying out in pain as the other man kept pointing him with his wand. She knew she had to do something, but what?

She looked around, remembering her wand was probably somewhere nearby, when she saw Snape's, lying just a few feet away. She tried to get up, but her body ached too much, and so she crawled, hoping Malfoy wouldn't see her, and trying not to whimper from the pain. She stretched her fingers and closed them around the wand, aiming at Malfoy and just as he started saying Avada… she yelled Expelliarmus.

He was thrown to the other side of the room, wandless, and she looked at Snape again and muttered a spell to release him from the wall. He fell to the floor, panting, but reached out with his arm and his wand flew from her grasp to his. Slowly he rose to his feet and walked to where Malfoy was lying. Apparently, he had hit his head while falling and was now unconscious. He looked at her and said –pretend to be unconscious too- before he pointed his wand at Malfoy and woke him up.

"That wasn't a very good idea, Lucius; see what I had to do?" he asked, towering in front of the man and pointing at Hermione. "What if someone notices I've changed her memories? They could break the spell and see everything. She could help the Dark Lord finally kill Potter, and you almost ruined everything because of your ego."

A few seconds passed and none of them said anything. Malfoy seemed to have calmed down, fear replacing his rage.

"And how do you know you can trust her? How do you now she's not just trying to get information for her friends?" he finally said trying to sound calm but never taking his eyes off the wand pointing at him.

"That is none of your business, Lucius. I know the truth and so does the Dark Lord, and that's enough. Now" he said taking yet another step closer to the man lying on the floor "what should I do with you?"

Malfoy crawled backwards until he hit the wall, but said nothing.

"I probably should just kill you, as you were going to do that to me; or perhaps I should let you live, and see what the Dark Lord does to you when he hears about this. What do you think, Lucius?"

"I… Severus, please, I wasn't really going to kill you, I was just mad and wanted to scare you. Please."

"So is that what you were doing then? And here I was, thinking you were about to do something as stupid killing your Lord's most faithful servant."

"Severus, please," he pleaded again, his eyes switching constantly from the wand to the other man's face

"You know what? I don't think you're even worth the trouble. Just get out of here, and stay away from me. I'm looking forward to seeing what our Master will do to you."

He just stared at him in amazement for a few seconds, before vanishing with a loud POP.

Then Snape went back to where she was lying, getting on his knees and whispering softly.

"You can open your eyes now, he's gone." He reached his arms to help her up but stopped when she whimpered and pulled away.

"Can you walk?" He asked sounding concerned and she just shook her head no.

"We must leave this place, put your arms around my shoulders and hold on tight."

She did was she was told and the next second they Apparated inside a dark room. He was standing and held her in his arms as he lit a few candles and walked down a hallway.

"We're in my house," he said "but we can't stay here long, it could be dangerous for you. I just need some potions and we'll leave."

They entered what looked like a lab and he walked towards the wall on the back, were she saw what must have been hundreds of bottles full of different potions, placed neatly on the shelves. He looked around for a few seconds, still holding her in his arms, and then took a few and put them inside his pockets, before asking her to hold on tight and Apparating again.

This time she opened her eyes to what looked like a small apartment, and he turned the lights on and carried her inside the bedroom, laying her carefully on the bed and walking back out of the room without a word.

Just then all that had happened came back to her, as she realized just how close she had been to being murdered. She felt her body start to shudder and she couldn't help it when she broke into sobs. She put her hands over her face and felt it swollen where Malfoy had hit her. Her whole body ached and she could almost swear he had broken her ribs when he had kicked her over and over again.

He must have heard her sobs, because he entered the room again, carrying towels and some of the potions he had retrieved from his place and looking worried. He sat next to her on the bed and carefully wiped her tears away, whispering that she should calm down, she was safe there, and it was all over. He tried to clean her face with the towel, but she was shaking badly and he was afraid he would hurt her.

He reached his hands under her back and helped her to a sitting position, before opening one of the bottles and asking her to drink the potion in it. She didn't even hesitate and took it all in one gulp, instantly feeling her body and her mind calming down. When she stopped shaking, he gave her another potion, saying that one was for the pain, and she gladly took that one, too. Then he laid her head back on the pillow and took the towel once more, cleaning the dry blood off her face.

She couldn't help being surprised at how tender he could be, someone who always seemed so mean and careless.

He took his wand and muttered a few spells, and she felt her face healing. She touched it and noticed it wasn't swollen anymore. She felt the same with most of the bruises covering her body. He pulled her shirt up a little and took a long look at her ribcage before saying that would take a little longer healing.

She felt something cold on her skin and gasped, but he looked at her and told her not to worry. He put a towel on top of the potion on her ribs and muttered a few more words. Then he got up and told her she should get some sleep, they'd have to leave the place early in the morning. Her eyelids felt heavy and she sighed as she closed her eyes, feeling safe now he was with her.

She woke up when the sunlight reached her face, and she covered her eyes with her hand, trying to adjust to the light. She looked around and found him asleep, sitting on an armchair by the door.

She couldn't stop the smile forming on her lips as she cleared her throat, waking him up. He seemed startled at first, as he looked around the room, but once he was sure everything was in order he got up and stood a few steps closer to the bed.

"How are you feeling?" He asked, and she couldn't help feeling a little disappointed when she noticed the usual coldness back on his voice.

"Much better, thank you."

"And your ribs?"

"Still hurt, but just a little. What is this place?" she asked, looking around.

"It's a safe house; we're still in London."

She looked at him, wondering if he'd really been as nice as she remembered from the night before. It seemed impossible now. They stayed in silence for a few moments, before he said

"I can't believe he fooled you into going to that cabin." he sounded exasperated

"He sent a parchment just like the one you had given me before, he told me it was important, that we should meet there; I thought it was you," she explained, looking down at her hands.

"Did you tell him anything important, about what I told you the other day?"

"Of course not!" she said

"Good. Get ready, we have to leave."

"Where are we going?"

"I have to go see the Dark Lord, make sure Malfoy hasn't convinced him you are a danger to him and should be killed."

She looked up at him in shock.

"You will go back to your headquarters and tell everyone you will be leaving for a few days, I wouldn't want them looking for you. Pack what you need and meet me by the Leaky Cauldron; I will be leaving the city for two or three days. It wouldn't be safe for you to stay there while I'm gone, and you would endanger your friends. You're coming with me."


	6. some privacy

He watched her as she closed her eyes, finally falling asleep mostly thanks to the potions she'd taken.

He had been shocked at seeing just how hurt she really was, Lucius could be a real animal. With what he had brought from his house, he had been able to heal most of the wounds, but the damage hadn't been just physical.

He left the room, retrieving the potions and towels, but soon went back inside when he heard her whimper. She was still asleep, but clearly agitated. She was muttering and shifting on the bed, and he could have sworn he heard her call his name.

He had been worried about her, he still was. When he had seen her break down… he just couldn't act cold, his usual self. He had sat beside her on the bed, trying to calm her down. He had been kind and caring, and that just wasn't him.

Still, he now sat on the armchair by the door and watched her sleep. Slowly she stopped moving and mumbling, but he couldn't take his eyes off her. Even after everything she had been through, she looked so peaceful in her sleep, so innocent. He told himself he couldn't let something like that happen to her again. He had to protect her, no matter what.

As morning came, he was again the man everyone knew, talking briskly and giving orders. They left the apartment early; he had to go see his Master, make sure they wouldn't go after them, and she had to go back to the Order.

He had been delaying the trip, knowing it wasn't the best time to leave the city, but now he knew he had to go, and he had to take her with him. It would be safer for them to stay together, at least for the next few days, he couldn't leave her unprotected.

He Apparated at headquarters again, knowing Lucius was probably there already. He walked in as calm as ever, even as he wrapped his fingers around his wand, ready for anything.

Walking down the hallway to the studio, he could hear a man screaming, and the sound grew louder as he approached the room.

He knocked on the door and waited. A few minutes passed and yet the screaming never stopped. When the door finally opened, he saw two Death Eaters carrying a third one between them, apparently unconscious. All three of them were wearing their masks, but he easily recognized the long white-blond hair from the one in the middle.

He waited until they left the room and then entered, closing the door behind him. His Master was sitting by the fire, as usual, but he looked up at him and spoke as he walked in.

"Severus, so glad you came. I have just heard the most incredible things from Lucius."

"You have, sir?" he asked, feeling nervous but keeping his expression as calm as ever

"Oh, yes. He seemed to believe a certain young witch trying to gather information was manipulating you. He assured you attacked him last night to protect her when he found this out."

"If I may, Master, the truth is he was about to kill her when I found him. He knew the orders regarding the girl, but he wouldn't listen, so I had to step in."

"Yes, I gathered as much a few minutes ago with a little 'persuasion', as you might have noticed. He told me, however, that you have modified her memories of the events."

"I had to; Lucius had told her all about how we were using her."

"Will that be a problem? Will someone notice any change in her?"

"Of course not, sir, I was extremely careful."

"Very well. I will expect you, of course, to report any change immediately, I won't risk someone learning about this. If that happened, you would be held fully responsible."

"Yes Master, thank you. And about Lucius…?"

"He won't be a problem; he will go to the mountains, to continue negotiations with the giants. They have killed the last two men I sent."

Silence fell on the room again, as he took in the last words, and he could have sworn he had seen an evil gleam cross the Dark Lord's red eyes.

She was already standing by the Leaky Cauldron as he got there, and he hesitated before approaching her. It will be for the best, he told himself, before walking to her side.

He didn't want to risk being overheard, so he just stood beside her, took her hand and they both Apparated away.

They were in a forest, and although the sun was up in the sky barely any light could trespass the thick cover the trees had formed.

She let go of his hand and looked around, trying to figure out where they were.

"We are in Ireland," he offered, knowing what she was thinking.

She looked back at him but didn't say anything, so he just asked her to follow him and started walking. He knew the house was a few miles away, but he had Apparated far from it to make sure no one was following.

"Here we are," he finally said, after walking for almost an hour, and she stopped dead in her tracks.

She followed his gaze and saw a tiny house that looked about to fall to pieces. He smiled to himself at the look on her face and stepped forward, opening the door for her.

She gasped now as she entered. She had seen magically enlarged objects, of course, but she couldn't help being amazed every time.

The place looked like a small palace, but what really caught her attention was, of course, the library she saw on the first room to her left. It was covered in what must have been thousands of books, the shelves all the way up to the roof.

"What is this place?" she asked, still looking around in interest.

"It's were I come when I need to leave London to rest. Or hide. It is also where I find some important ingredients for potions, which is why we're here today."

"Come with me, I'll show you to your room," he said, and started walking up the stairs.

"I believe you will find everything you need inside," he told her, as he opened the door to a beautiful bedroom. She stepped in and left her bag on the bed.

"Make yourself comfortable. I'll be downstairs, go there when you're ready, there are some things we need to discuss," he said, as he closed the door.

He walked back and entered the kitchen. It was almost noon already, so he took out his wand to make something to eat.

A few minutes later, she walked in and sat at the table too. She had taken off her robes and was now just wearing Muggle clothes.

"You should eat something," he told her, pointing to the sandwiches he had made. She took one and looked back at him, waiting for him to talk.

"I'm surprised they let you leave," he said, referring to the Order.

"Well, it wasn't easy, they didn't want me to. Especially since I wouldn't tell them why I was leaving or where, not even with whom."

"I thought it might be, but if they had known the truth…"

"And what is the truth? Why am I here?" she asked.

"As I told you, I had to leave, needed to get some things for the potion I'm brewing, and time was running out. And while I am here the Dark Lord could change his mind about you being useful, about keeping you alive."

He looked deep into her eyes, trying to read her thoughts, but once again, he was pushed back.

"That's not very polite, trying to get into other people's minds without an invitation," she said coolly, as she finished her sandwich.

They were silent for a few minutes, and she finally asked

"What is it you're looking for here?"

"It's a rare flower, this forest is the only place it grows, and it can only be found after dark. I will need your help in finding it, since we can't leave until I have five of them."

"Why did you help me last night?" she asked suddenly

He looked up at her in confusion.

"It was the right thing to do. Why did you help _me_?"

"Same reason, I guess," she answered, looking away from his eyes.

The room fell silent again, both looking around uncomfortably.

"I have to go," he finally said. "I will be back before sunset."

He turned around and left. He didn't really need to go anywhere, but he wanted to leave the house, at least for a few hours. He decided he would go back to his place in London; he wanted to make sure no one had entered, and needed to check on the potion.

A few hours later, when he walked back inside the house, he found her sitting on the library, at least a dozen books spread over the small table. She gasped when he spoke, she hadn't heard him enter.

"You should get ready, it's almost time. Make sure you put some gloves on, you'll need them. If you don't have any let me know, and I'll see if I can find a pair for you."

He went back to his bedroom and closed the door. He took a shower and then walked back downstairs to wait for her. He was already wearing gloves and a warm cloak, knowing it was cold outside. She joined him a few minutes later and together they walked into the forest.

He had explained how to find the flower and after many hours of searching, they found two of them. He told her they'd have to continue the following night.

After almost an hour in bed, he decided he couldn't sleep, the now usual images making it impossible. He carefully walked down the stairs, trying not to make any noise but soon realized it was unnecessary, the light coming from the library told him he wasn't the only one awake.

He cleared his throat as he entered, trying not to scare her, and sat on an armchair, across from her.

"I'm sorry, I couldn't sleep," she said.

"Don't worry; you were not the only one."

A few minutes passed in silence, before she sighed and spoke again

"Every time I close my eyes I see him. Malfoy. It's like last night happening all over again."

"There's no need to worry. He's not here anymore, he's away, and he won't come back for a long time, if ever."

She looked at him, eyes wide in surprise, and he smiled slightly.

"I did nothing to him, if that's what you're worried about, although maybe I should have killed him when I had the chance. He's off on a dangerous mission, but he's a powerful wizard, and very intelligent; he might be able to stay alive."

He got up, went to the kitchen and walked back with a bottle of Firewhiskey and two glasses.

"I probably shouldn't do this, but it will help you sleep," he said, as he poured some of the liquid on each glass and gave one to her.

They stayed in silence for some time, drinking, lost in thought, and he couldn't help looking at her every now and then. She was wearing a robe over her nightgown and he could see her bare legs where the robe fell open. He could feel his body reacting and decided he should leave before doing something stupid.

"I think I'm going back to sleep now, it's getting really late," he said, as he got up and started walking towards his room.

"Good night, professor," he heard her say softly as he left.

The next morning, he found her in the kitchen. He was surprised to see she had made breakfast.

She turned around when he entered a smile on her face as she offered him a plate. He reached for it and as he did his fingers grazed hers, and he felt electricity run through his entire arm at the contact.

She must have felt it too, he thought to himself, because she looked up at his face as it happened, and they stayed like that, eyes fixed on each other's for a few seconds.

He was the one to break the contact, a cold look back on his face as he thanked her, sat down and started on his breakfast.

The whole day passed like that. For some reason, even when the house was big enough, they kept bumping into each other, and every time that happened, he felt the same reaction on his body. It was driving him crazy.

They didn't speak much, she just seemed too interested in his books, and he was too busy stopping himself from jumping her right then and there.

That night they went back into the forest, and thankfully, they found the rest of the flowers. He told her to get some sleep; they would be going back to London the next morning.

"I need to go to see my Master, and you'll be coming along," he saw the look of fear on her face and tried to calm her down "You will be safe, don't worry."

He covered her eyes before taking her hand and Apparating at headquarters; it would be safer if she didn't see where they were, at least for now. He walked her to the library and then took the cloth off. She looked around and then back at him, a questioning look on her face.

"Just stay here and don't touch anything, I'll lock the door so that no one comes in," he explained. "I'll be back in a few minutes."

He finally left and walked back to his Master's studio. The house was almost empty, it was still early in the morning, but soon many Death Eaters would be arriving. He would have to hurry.

He entered the room and found his Master reading, as usual. He paid him no attention as he walked in and closed the door behind him, but suddenly he looked around, as if he had heard something.

"You brought the girl here," he said, not a question but a statement.

"Yes, my Lord," he replied. "I didn't think it would be safe leaving her alone, and there are a few matters we still need to discuss before she can return to the Order."

"So why are you here, Severus?"

"They will be going back to Grimmauld Place five days from now, but only to hold a meeting. As you know, Master, the place is not well protected as before. It would be a perfect time to attack; they would be caught off guard."

He considered his words for a few seconds, before looking at him again

"Very well, you will be in charge of making the necessary arrangements, do not disappoint me."

"I won't, Master, thank you."

"You should head back to the library, before the others find her."

He vowed and quietly left the room, moving faster as he heard voices ahead.

As he reached the door, he found a few Death Eaters already trying to break his spell to enter the library, so he quickly made his way to the front and opened the door. As he stepped in the others poked their heads to see what was inside. They didn't seem pleased, but before they had time to enter he had grabbed her arm and pulled her out.

Ignoring the curious glances, they walked down the corridor, but as he came closer to the entrance he looked around, making sure they wouldn't be seen, opened a door to his side and pushed her inside what looked like a small cupboard, closing the door behind him.

He lifted his wand and murmured a spell, pointing at the door. The room was small and barely lit by a few candles, but it would have to do.

He looked at her and noticed the look of confusion on her face.

"We need to talk, now, and this is probably the best place we will find," he whispered.

She looked at the door and then back at him, not fully understanding.

"We'll have some privacy here, at least for a few minutes. We would probably be overhead elsewhere. If someone tries to open the door the lights will flicker, and that will give us enough time to pretend…" his voice trailed off, a slight look of discomfort on his face.

"Five days from today we will attack Grimmauld Place."

She gasped in shock but did not interrupt

"The Dark Lord believes the Order will be there, holding a meeting. You have to make sure everyone goes, and they have to be ready for the attack."

He looked at her and she nodded in understanding, so he continued.

"They have to make it look as if they were really surprised, but make sure they set anti-Apparition wards on the house. And everyone should have a Portkey at the ready, in case they get hurt and need to leave the place."

"They will want to know how I got the information," she said, her voice slightly shaky.

"Then make something up. They can't know I'm the one behind this."

Suddenly the lights flickered and went out, and they both looked at the door in shock.

"Someone's coming," he said, as he grabbed her arm and pushed against her, crashing his mouth over hers.

All was forgotten as he felt her returning the kiss, her arms at his shoulders, pulling him closer. He felt her push her head back when he moved his lips down to her neck, kissing and nibbling all the skin he could reach. He took a few steps forward, making her move back against the wall. Her hands now entangled in his hair, he moved his own all over her body. He couldn't see her, but he could feel her reaction to his touch.

Of course, he had seen her reach for her wand moments earlier, he knew she had made the lights go out, that no one was trying to open the door, but that didn't matter. All he cared about was feeling her skin against his.

He slowly unbuttoned her shirt, his lips back on hers, and heard her moan when he circled her hardened nipples with his thumbs through her bra. He pushed it aside and lowered his face, flicking his tongue over the sensitive skin. He covered one of her nipples with his mouth, and smiled to himself as he felt her body arch, trying to get more contact.

He slowly moved his lips back up, kissing her collarbone as his hands now travelled under her skirt. He slowly caressed her legs, stroking his way up her thighs, then making her growl as she felt him stop and go back down before reaching the place he knew she wanted him the most.

He wrapped his fingers around her knee and brought one leg up, placing it around his hip as he pushed against her, letting her feel his arousal. She moaned at the pressure and he reached one hand between their bodies, fingers carefully moving over her clit.

He felt her arms around his shoulders again, nails sinking through his clothes, her mouth looking for his and then biting his lower lip in need. He slipped a finger inside her and pressed his body harder against hers, to keep her from falling.

Her mouth was as demanding as her body and it wasn't long before he felt her tense and moan as she reached an orgasms.

This time he didn't pull away, he couldn't, didn't want to. He placed both hands on her hips and grabbing one side of her knickers with each he pulled hard, tearing them and letting them fall to the floor as she gasped in surprise.

He hastily unzipped his pants and reached for her other knee, lifting it so that now she had both her legs around him.

He couldn't wait any more and he entered her in one swift motion, kissing her again as they both moaned in anticipation. His body needed her, and he could tell hers needed him just as much.

He moved inside of her, slowly at first, but soon her hips were meeting his every thrust and he couldn't help but groan as the rhythm increased.

She bit his shoulder to drown her loud moans as she reached her second orgasms, clenching her muscles around him, bringing him with her.

Panting, exhausted, she slowly loosened her legs from around his hips, and he put his arms around her waist to help her stand. Uncomfortable silence filled the room as they fixed their wrinkled cloths in the darkness, and once ready he reached for the knob and opened the door, stepping out into the lit corridor.

He noticed a few Death Eaters looking at them, their expressions mostly a mix of amusement and confusion.

"The lady wanted some privacy," he said smugly, taking her hand once more and guiding her to the entrance door.


	7. trust me

What was he doing locking her up in that library to go talk to his Master? What if someone had just walked in? The last two times she'd been face to face with Death Eaters she'd almost gotten herself killed.

Of course, he had been there to save her both times. Was it just coincidence? No, what was she thinking? He had helped her, he still was, and he was helping the Order, helping her friends, even if they didn't know.

She had spent almost two entire days with him. When he had told her he was leaving, and that she was going with him, she had thought, foolishly she now told herself, that maybe it was a chance to get to know him better. God knew she had tried.

He was just impossible, she should've known. After being so warm and caring one night he had changed back to the man she'd known all those years. Maybe he had a thing for being the saviour of helpless women or something; as soon as she was able to take care of herself, he had gone back to being cold and indifferent.

He had made her walk for almost an hour through a forest. She had been stung and bit by insects, had gotten her clothes full of mud and had tripped at least three times, and she could have sworn she heard him chuckle every one of them. He hadn't even offered to help her. He had told her they hadn't Apparated closer to the house for security reasons, but that didn't make her any happier about it.

The house was lovely on the inside, and the bedroom very comfortable, but once she got a good look at the library, she knew she'd spend most of the time in there. That is, when she wasn't too busy trying to get to know him, of course.

First attempt, just a few minutes after their arrival, in the kitchen. He had even offered her sandwiches and started some light conversation, but closed ranks when it drifted to more serious subjects. Hell, he had taken the first chance he had to up and leave.

That night they had gone into the forest, looking for that flower he needed. He'd told her the truth, it was rare, and incredibly hard to find, and so she was sure he wouldn't be suspicious when she went back, after hours out there, with only one in her hands. She had seen a few more, but he had said they would go back to London once he got all five of them, and she needed more time.

Second attempt, how about a new approach? Not able to sleep, she had entered the library, and was most concentrated on an incredibly interesting transfiguration book when he walked in.

She tried being honest with him, telling him the reason she couldn't sleep, and he had tried to comfort her, telling her why she shouldn't be worried about Malfoy, but that was about all she got out of him that night. She was aware, however, of him staring at her when he thought she wasn't looking. She felt herself go red when she noticed her robe was partially open, leaving most of her bare legs in plain view.

Even after they both left the library and went to their respective bedrooms, she just kept rolling in bed, getting nightmares every time she dozed off.

Shortly after sunrise, she had given up on her efforts to get some rest and gone back to the kitchen. She enjoyed cooking, even if she didn't get to do it very often. She had made a big breakfast and offered him some as he walked in. What she didn't expect was the feeling she got when their fingers touched. Her skin tingled, but in a good way, and by the way he was looking at her, he had felt something too.

Attempt number…well, who's really counting? After that feeling, curiosity got the best of her, and she started "accidentally" bumping into him whenever she had the chance, to see if they would feel it again. They did, every single time. She had never felt anything like it before, and she didn't really know why it was happening now.

That night, of course, they went back into the forest. This time numbers were against her. They had found two flowers the night before, and she walked through the forest once more, picking only one of them. She hadn't gotten much out of him that day, but still, another try wouldn't hurt, she thought to herself. She had to hide her disappointment when, after hours of looking, he walked back inside the house having found the other two he needed.

A loud knock on the library door brought her back to reality. He had told her he would lock her in magically, but what if someone broke the spell before he got back? She took out her wand, even when she knew it wouldn't be much help if they entered.

She saw the door shake, and took a step back, frightened. She tripped on the table and fell to the floor, many of the books falling loudly with her.

They had clearly heard that, for they started yelling, asking who was there, and threw even more spells at the door, trying to get it open.

She got up and backed against the opposite wall when she finally saw the door open, but once again, it was Snape, helping her in the last minute. He grabbed her hand and pulled her out of the library. The others were looking at them, but no one did anything to stop him.

On the way out, when she was finally feeling relieved she would be leaving that place; he opened a door and pulled her inside a room.

His plans were crazy, how would she ever get her friends to go to Grimmauld Place knowing they were going to be attacked? More importantly, how would she get them to believe her when she couldn't even tell them were the information had come from?

While she was listening to him part of her thoughts started drifting in a completely different direction. The room was so small they were almost touching, she could even smell him, and gods, he smelled good. Knowing the charm he had put on the door she saw her chance, after days of feeling that tingle at his touch, to get something more, and she took it without hesitation.

That time had felt more intense than the ones before, more real. It was better than she remembered, but as everything else, it had to end.

When they finally left and Apparated near Diagon Alley again, he hurriedly gave her a piece of parchment, just like the one they'd used before, and told her to just write on it if she needed anything from him. They would be meeting at Grimmauld Place in just five days.

The moment she opened the door to headquarters and stepped inside, she was buried under at least three pairs of arms, all hugging her.

"Hermione, are you all right?"

"You had us so worried, leaving like that."

"Almost three days and not even an owl!"

"Please, I can't breathe," she finally said, and they took a step away from her to give her some room, falling silent but still with worried looks on their faces.

"I have something important to tell you, is everyone here?" she asked, looking around.

"Most of the members. What is it, Hermione?" Harry asked, looking at her in slight confusion.

"I'll tell you as soon as we're all together," she promised as she walked inside the kitchen.

The truth was she had no idea how she was going to tell them what she had to, and how she would explain where the information had come from, but there wasn't much time to think, she'd just have to improvise.

They were all sitting by the kitchen table and looking at her. They were making her nervous.

"We might have a chance to trap many Death Eaters, but there's not much time," she finally said, cutting to the chase. She looked around and saw they were still looking at her intently. No one interrupted.

"They think we're going back to our old headquarters, and are setting up a plan to attack us there, but now we know it, we will be ready for them, we could lure them into a trap."

"How do you know this?" Harry asked, but it was clearly the question everyone had in mind

"That doesn't matter, you'll have to trust me; after all, I was right about that Auror passing information, wasn't I?"

Silence filled the room, as they thought about the news.

"That's a lot you're asking, telling us to go into a house and wait for Death Eaters to attack," someone said, she wasn't sure who did.

"I know, but we can do it. We just have to be careful. It might be our best chance to weaken the enemy."

They looked at each other, still not saying anything but some of them nodding their heads in agreement.

"We have five days to get ready," she said, "We have to start now."

A few more seconds passed before Lupin finally got up and said "Then I should call the rest of the Order, and arrange a meeting for tonight."

"Thank you," she said, relieved at their response, as she got up, grabbed her bag and walked up to her bedroom.

She had barely left the bag on the bed and started to the bathroom when she heard a knock on her door. Harry and Ron walked in as she opened and sat down on her bed, looking at her.

"What's going on?" she asked, too tired to be polite.

"Well, that's what we'd like to know."

"Yeah, you've been acting strange for some time now. What is it?"

"There's nothing wrong, guys, I just have too many things in my mind right now."

"Come on, Hermione. First, just when we're about to leave for Godric's Hollow you ask us to stay, you give us no explanation but still we do. Then you tell us about that Auror working for Voldemort, turns out you were right, and still you wouldn't tell us how you found out, and now this…" Harry said. His voice sounded hurt.

"I know, and I'm really sorry, but that's just the way it is, I can't tell you anything else."

"And that's not all," Ron interrupted "you've been avoiding us for days now; you hardly talk to anyone here, and spend most of your time sitting up in the library or in your bedroom. You can trust us, you know? We're worried about you."

"I promise I will tell you everything, when the time comes, you'll be the first to know; but right now I can't. I'm sorry, but you know me well enough to know I'm serious."

Harry opened his mouth to retort, starting to look annoyed, but Ron spoke first.

"OK"

They both looked at him, surprised but he just continued.

"It's Hermione, Harry. If she says she can't tell us anything else, then I believe her, and so should you. We'll know everything when she's ready to tell us."

"Thank you, Ron," she muttered, a look of gratitude on her face.

A few months ago, it looked like things had slowly started to happen between her and Ron, but then Dumbledore died, and everything changed, and they decided they would keep their relationship like always for the time being; there were more important things they needed to do. They hadn't even talked much about it; it was more like an unspoken agreement. Still, she couldn't help but notice his attitude towards her had changed. They didn't fight so much, and he was nice and comprehensive when she least expected him to, like that very moment.

"You're right. We should go back downstairs; get everything ready for the meeting tonight. You should get some rest, Hermione, you look tired."

"I am. I'll see you later," she said, as they left the room.


	8. the attack

He hadn't heard from her in five days, not since that morning he had taken her there and told her his plans.

He still didn't know what had gotten into him, acting like he did, but he was even more confused about her behaviour. She had been the one to make the first move after all, even if she had tried to hide it.

Was there something more to what had happened? Sometimes he thought that maybe she was getting the wrong ideas about it, about them. Stress and dangerous situations could do that to anyone. Maybe she thought she now had different feelings towards him. To tell the truth, he was starting to get confused himself. It had begun as work, plain and simple, but after what they'd been through the last days…

No, he told himself, he just couldn't get involved with anything, not with her, not with anyone. His work was too important. He had known her for years, and cared about her, if only a little. Even if he didn't want to admit it.

That's right; there was nothing more to it.

Still, there had been no news, and even when he told himself that probably meant everything was going according to plan, part of him wished she had just used the parchment he'd given her.

Now everything was ready, just a few more hours until dark and they'd be on their way.

He had spent most of the last days at headquarters, and he was there that very moment, going through the last details of his plan. Again. He had studied every step and every possible outcome, trying to be ready for anything that could happen whether they won or lost. He knew there was a lot he would risk either way.

He had been able to choose the Death Eaters that would go with him, and most of them were already there, talking excitedly before the battle.

It wasn't easy, trying to make it look as if he was doing his best for his Lord, the best team, the best plan, while at the same time he had to be sure there would be enough flaws to let the Order capture most of them.

He had decided he would take about twenty men with him, but he hadn't chosen the strongest ones. The more that got out of Grimmauld Place the harder it would be to hide the real reasons for the defeat.

So the hours passed and they were finally on their way, all wearing their masks and marching together.

The main plan was easy. Three Death Eaters would stay outside, making sure no one got out. They would set anti-Apparition wards once they were inside. The rest of them would enter the house together, noiselessly, and attack at first sight. They would probably be outnumbered, but the surprise would give them time and advantage (at least that's what they thought).

He was the first to enter, leaving the door open for the others as he walked inside. He knew the house well enough and slowly made his way towards the sound of voices. He waited until everyone was inside and the door closed again to set the wards and, being careful no one noticed, he pointed his wand to a wall behind his back, a well chosen spell awakening Miss Black.

He only had a second to duck before the first spell was fired. Taking a step aside he saw one of the Death Eaters fall, the others shouting their own curses over the screeching sounds coming from the painting.

A few moments passed before they were finally surrounded. Well, at least they were trying to make it look as if they had been surprised, he told himself. Knowing what would happen, he had stepped away from the group, but as the battle started he had to take part.

Walking around, trying to remain unnoticed, he could see them moving about the house. They weren't as outnumbered as he had thought, the Order had obviously only sent a few members, probably because they didn't want to risk losing more. But the golden trio was there, of course.

He could see Potter fighting one of the Death Eaters in the hallway. The boy had clearly improved, but not nearly enough. He was holding the other back, but didn't notice the man closing in from behind, and Snape had to set a shield around him in the last second to stop the curse he hadn't seen coming.

Before the Death Eater could see who had stopped it, he was on the move again, and after avoiding a few more spells sent his way he had to step into another couple of duels, even stunning one of his men before he could kill that Tonks woman, who had tripped over one of her own friends. She looked around surprised, but one side of her head was bleeding and she just grabbed her unconscious friend's wrist and used her portkey to get away.

Looking around he noticed many Order's members were gone, and also most of his Death Eaters. They were probably taking them away with the portkeys once they got them unconscious.

The curse that flew right over his shoulder surprised him, he had to admit it, and he turned around to see the younger Weasley boy aiming at him once again. He deflected this second curse without much effort, but he knew he couldn't get distracted, and so he used a minor curse to throw him against the wall, using the time it took him to get back on his feet to get away from him.

Unfortunately, there were few Death Eaters left now, and it was getting harder to remain unnoticed.

Hermione had been fighting since it had started. She had been hit by a few curses, but wasn't badly hurt and refused to use the portkey to get back home. They were winning, she could tell that much, but she was worried about Snape. He was there, that was for sure, but was he alright? Had anyone hit him with a curse? Had he been taken with the others?

She had stunned two Death Eaters herself, one of them when he was about to kill Remus, and as she turned around she saw another running after Ginny, and she was sure the girl hadn't seen him.

Without taking a moment to think she ran right after them, avoiding a few more curses on her way, but halfway through the next room she noticed Ginny was nowhere to be seen, and as she turned around, ready to go back to the others gasped in shock.

The Death Eater was standing right behind her and pointing his wand at her. She just froze. She had been fighting for so long, had found herself in so many battles, but still, for some reason, now she couldn't move, even when she knew what would happen.

It felt like time had stopped. She could hear her friends fighting the remaining Death Eaters, see the spells flying around the house, but no one seemed to see her. Suddenly she was all alone.

Finally, he made a move. He lifted his wand, and without breaking their eye contact, he said the words that would mean her death. With wide eyes, she saw the green light slowly approaching and then she felt a strong force, pulling at her waist. She felt her body spin in the air and then she was falling, finally hitting the hard floor.

But then something else. Instead of the nothingness she thought would follow, she felt something fall on top of her. The next second she was flipped over, now laying on top of it, as she saw a jet of red light miss her by inches and then a second one of green light, only this time it hit the Death Eater that had attacked her, and he fell to the floor.

Slowly she turned her head, looking at the person beneath her. Even with the mask, she knew who it was right away, those deep, black eyes looking back at her worriedly. She could do nothing but stare back at him, even when his hand reached for hers and pulled it inside the pocket of his robes, both touching the portkey at the same time and being transported away.

She opened her eyes when she felt the floor again under her feet, only to see him looking right back at her. He let go of her to take off his mask and she felt her knees give way before his strong arms took her once more around the waist, keeping her from falling. She had hit her head pretty hard, her vision was blurred and she was slightly dizzy, but still she just couldn't take her eyes off him.

Their breathing was the only sound in the room as the minutes passed, none of them making a move. One of her hands wandered it's way up to rest on his chest, and that seemed to be enough to break the spell, because he gasped as he felt it and finally took a step back, making sure first she wouldn't fall.

She just stood still, watching him as he took another step away from her, his eyes still on her as he said in a whisper. "You should go back to your friends."

Still, none of them made another move.

"Thank you," she whispered, just loud enough for him to hear.

He opened his mouth to answer, then closed it again, shut his eyes and took a deep breath. Slowly he turned around and walked to the door, stopping as he reached it, leaning on the frame. She stood silent, watching him and could hardly believe it when, with a resigned sigh, he turned around and strode back to her, burying his hands in her hair, pulling her closer and crashing his lips on hers.

She could feel his tongue tracing her lips before gently parting them, deepening the kiss. At first, the kiss was strong, full of need, but then it became almost tender. Their tongues were moving slowly, caressing and exploring at the same time, for what felt like an eternity. Even when they parted for air they stayed together, and she felt him nibbling on her lower lip as he mumbled something she was sure she had misunderstood.

"I thought I'd lost you," he whispered into the kiss, surprising even himself and hoping she hadn't heard him.

He had gone after her the moment he had seen her run, but even as he reached for her and pushed her out of the way, barely avoiding the curse himself and falling on top of her, he had been scared to death it had been too late.

He stiffened a little when he felt her fingers slowly undoing the buttons on his robe, but then he looked at her, taking in her swollen lips and dishevelled hair, and he couldn't help but kiss her again.

His hands went back to her waist, breaking the kiss only to take her top off just as she let his robe fall to the ground, closely followed by his shirt.

They'd been together before, but this time felt different, and they both knew it.

He felt her hands slowly caressing his chest, and he realized they had never seen each other naked before. Her fingers were tracing the scars marking his skin, and soon her lips followed suit, and he could only moan.

After a few seconds, he pushed her head back up, kissing her as his hands snaked through her body, taking off her bra and slowly caressing her breasts. His lips drew their way down her jaw and neck, nibbling at her collarbone before finally reaching her hardened nipples, his tongue tracing and teasing, and he felt her hands on his head, pushing him closer as she moaned in pleasure.

His tongue travelled from one breast to the other and then back up, and he licked her earlobe just as his hands reached her thighs, pushing her hard against his body, both moaning at the contact.

Their lips crashed together again, only this time the kiss was forceful, full of passion. Their hands ran freely over each other's body, and soon her jeans and his slacks where lying on the floor with their underwear and the rest of their clothes.

When the need for air forced them apart, again they took a step back.

She used the chance to take in his slim but muscular body, his pale skin, as he let his eyes wander over her curves. They were both pleasantly surprised at what the robes could hide.

Still it wasn't long before desire won over their curiosity, and they kissed again. He slowly kneeled over the carpet, taking her with him and then lying on the rug on top of her.

Moving down her body, he traced every bit of skin, leaving a wet trail from his tongue behind. He took his time, teasing and pleasuring all at once, and when he finally reached her core he parted her thighs and, looking up at her, flicked his tongue over her clit. Her back curved as she groaned, and he could see the look of desire on her face.

"Look at me," he said, his voice full of desire, and the moment their eyes met, he thrust a finger inside of her. He could tell she was trying hard not to break eye contact as he buried his face closer, his tongue and fingers making her writhe until she screamed as she reached an orgasm.

Only when she came back down did he stop moving, and then he kissed his way back up, nibbling and biting, knowing it would leave a mark.

As he reached her face he saw her panting, her eyes clouded with arousal, and he kissed her deeply, burying himself inside of her at the same time. He started moving at a slow pace, breaking the kiss and locking his eyes on hers, but soon she wrapped her legs around his waist, pushing him deeper, asking for more.

He felt her nails sink in his shoulders as the rhythm changed, thrusting faster, deeper, harder, just what she asking of him, and his hand was reaching between them, playing with her clit and pushing her over the edge once more. Her muscles contracting around him were driving him crazy, but it was her screaming, his first name leaving her lips for the first time as she was squirming under his body, that finally pushed him over too.

She was so tired she could barely move. It had been amazing, so much better than all the other times. Her eyelids felt so heavy she could barely keep her eyes open, but she just loved seeing him there, lying next to her and looking as exhausted as she felt. She gasped loudly as he suddenly sat upright. He looked at her, a strange look on his face, and then he jumped to his feet, hastily putting his clothes back on.

"Get dressed and get out of here," he said hastily, but she was just too shocked to even move.

He was almost fully dressed before he noticed she was still on the rug.

"Come on, what are you waiting for? You can't stay here. Use your portkey, you have to go."

She finally got up, but instead of doing as told, she just stared at him as he finished getting dressed.

He stopped just as he was buttoning his robe and looked at her again. He didn't look angry but worried. He took a deep breath to calm down and stepped closer to her, but before he could reach her, he gasped in pain, his hand flying to the spot she knew the Dark Mark was.

"Just go, you're not safe here." he said softly before Apparating away.


	9. missing

Worried? Well, that had to be an understatement.

She was past concern, past worry; she didn't know what she was feeling anymore. It had been almost a week, and she had no idea what else to do.

At first, it had bothered her, she had just assumed he was being a bastard, and even if she didn't like it, she could understand, especially coming from him.

After the night they had attacked Grimmauld Place he had taken her with him. It had been different and there was no denying that. For the first time he wasn't touching her because someone was watching, because he had to make it look real; he was doing it because that was what he wanted, at least she thought so.

Then, just as it had started it stopped, and he had almost kicked her out the next second. She couldn't help feeling confused, hurt.

After getting dressed, she had finally used her portkey to go back to headquarters, only to find everyone relieved to see she was alright. Apparently, they had been looking for her everywhere. After they had all gotten back from Grimmauld Place and realized she was missing, they started thinking maybe one of the Death Eaters that had gotten away had taken her with them.

She was relieved to learn no one from the Order had been seriously injured. A couple of them would have to spend a few days at St. Mungo's, but other than that, they were alright. She knew much of that was thanks to Snape.

Apparently, a few more Death Eaters had entered Grimmauld Place after she had left, but they had escaped before the Order could stun them. Seventeen men were left behind, soon to be sent to prison, one had died and only three or four had gotten away.

The next days they had been really busy. Some members were questioning the Death Eaters along with Ministry workers, and everyone else had gone back to Grimmauld Place, and was working on repairing the damage.

Even when she was busy, she couldn't help thinking of him. She had been hoping he would try to contact her, but hadn't heard from him yet.

She had been feeling more and more uncomfortable around people the last few days. She noticed she was getting lots of attention, and most times as she walked into a room they would stop talking, and she was sure they had been talking about her. They hadn't asked about her informant again, but she knew they were all thinking about it, and so she spent more and more time alone in her bedroom, or outside with Harry and Ron. Unlike everyone else, they were acting as usual around her, and for that, she was grateful.

Still, as the night came, she would quickly forget about it all. The only thing in her mind was him. Even when she knew that she should be angry at him for the way he had treated her that night she felt a tingle go through her body every time she thought about him.

Deep inside she had been hoping he would write her, ask her to meet him somewhere, and even go find her. She wanted to see him again, to feel him again. She wanted him to kiss her, to touch her as he had before. She knew she shouldn't want that, knew it was too dangerous, but still…

After the first few days passed without any news from him, she started feeling worried. Thinking back to the night of the attack, she remembered something she had paid no attention to before. When he had asked her to leave, she had seen him reach for the Dark Mark in his arm and had seen pain on his face.

What if that had been the reason he had left? Maybe Voldemort was calling him.

Then she really felt afraid for him. She knew he had been in charge of the attack, and they had failed. His Lord had lost many Death Eaters that night, so what if he blamed him for it? What if he was hurt, what if he was dead? She had to know, she had to help him. But how?

The first thing that came to her mind was the parchment he had given her. He had told her to use it if she needed to contact him; she was glad she hadn't used it before.

She ran up to her room, grabbed it and started looking for a quill. What would she write? What if someone else read it? She could get him in even more trouble if so.

After giving it some thought she decided she would just write 'are you there?' and see what happened. If someone other than him wrote back she would just destroy the parchment, but there was also a chance he would read it, and then she would know if he was ok, and she would stop worrying.

After writing the message, she stayed there, sitting in her chair and just looking at the parchment. The line she had written was gone, but nothing else appeared. After almost an hour, she finally rolled the parchment and put it in her pocket, but spent most of the day checking for an answer, every time she was sure she wouldn't be seen.

By the end of the day, she was even more worried than before. She kept telling herself maybe he'd just thrown his piece of parchment away, or lost it, that she shouldn't worry, he'd probably contact her when he needed to. Still, she couldn't calm down.

The next day the Weasleys were going to Diagon Alley. They needed to buy some things and stopping at the twins' shop as well. She knew it was a long shot, but decided to go with them. Maybe she'd see him there; maybe he couldn't find her at headquarters and would meet her in a public place.

She wandered the streets all afternoon, but there was no sign of him anywhere. As they got back she decided she'd have to come up with a plan, anything. She needed to find him.

The first logical place to look would be his house, but she had no idea where it was, she had only been there for a few minutes. Besides, anyone could be there it would be too dangerous.

The next place she could think of was that cabin where Malfoy had attacked her. He'd used it before to meet her, had been there twice. Maybe he had left her a message there or something.

That very afternoon she talked to Harry. She needed his invisibility cloak, so if there was someone there, other than Snape, she wouldn't be seen. Of course, he had wanted to know where she was going and why she needed it. Getting him to just trust her was getting harder; she knew he was worried about her. He had even offered to go with her, but finally relented and gave her the cloak.

She left the place, covered herself with the cloak and Apparated near the cabin. She looked around, trying to see if there was anyone around and then walked to the window. The place seemed empty, and as she entered, she noticed everything looked just like it had the last time she had been there. There was no sign of him anywhere.

She was running out of ideas and she knew it. There was only one place left that she could think of, the forest in Ireland.

She knew she wasn't supposed to go there, but she was too worried to care about that. He had told her he sometimes went there to hide, so if he was hurt there was a chance he could be there. She needed to know.

The main problem was she didn't know exactly where the place was, since he had Apparated them both the one time she had been there. After giving it careful thought, she decided she would try it anyway. Perhaps if she concentrated on the house she wanted to see, instead of a location, it would work all the same.

She closed her eyes and focused. Nothing. She tried it a second time. Nothing. Almost losing all hope she gave it a last try. She closed her eyes again, and thought about the house alone. She pictured it in her mind, the dirty walls, and the roof with holes in it… She kept that image for a few moments, then took a deep breath and tried it again, only this time she did feel the familiar sensations that came from Apparating.

She opened her eyes and was relieved to see the house in front of her.

Making sure the cloak covered her completely she reached for the handle and carefully opened the door. After waiting a few seconds to make sure no one had heard her she walked inside and closed it again

Quietly she started searching through every room, but there was no sign of him. She had gone through most of that floor when she heard a noise above. It sounded like something falling, and then silence again.

She went up the stairs, wand at the ready and trying not to make any sound. Things were scattered around everywhere, and she gasped when she noticed a fresh trail of blood on the floor.

All care was soon forgotten as she followed the trail at a run, all the way to the room she knew was his. She froze in place at the scene in front of her. He was there, lying on the floor, covered in blood. He wasn't moving.


	10. potions

He could hear sounds, or at least he thought so. It was more like a buzz actually. Everything was dark, but he wasn't sure he had his eyes open. He tried to move but his whole body felt too heavy. He didn't even feel pain, but he knew he was hurt. The noise was closer now, he was almost sure someone was talking. Then he drifted back to calmness.

He felt pressure under his body, like dozens of hands lifting him from the ground, and that voice was there again. He felt something going down his throat and he chocked. He started coughing and all the pain came back, but just for a few seconds. Then it all went away.

The next thing he felt was something warm and wet on his forehead. He tried to open his eyes again, but as he did, the light from the outside blinded him. He parted his lips, tried to get up, but was he really moving? He couldn't tell. The hands on him were careful; whoever it was wasn't trying to hurt him, and that was confusing. He passed out again.

_He was__ kneeling in a dark room, where he could only see the shape of his Master towering over him. "Severus" he said, and he could hear the venom in his voice. He was hit by a Crucio, his own screams echoing in his ears. After what felt like an eternity, the curse was lifted, and as he gasped for breath, he heard him speak again. _

"_I am disappointed in you, Severus. I believe you know what that means."_

"_I'm sorry__, Master, but it wasn't my fault. There was nothing I could do, they had been tipped off," he didn't even hear him cast the curse before it hit him, searing pain all through his body again._

He opened his eyes startled, but found himself in a different place. There was light coming from a window and it hurt his eyes. The pain was still there, but he felt better, stronger.

With all the strength, he could gather and lifted his upper body slightly. The room looked familiar, but he couldn't place it. Then he saw a figure walk through the open door. The voice of a woman calling his name as the things she was carrying fell to the floor.

He heard a mumble, but couldn't make out the words. He was dizzy and confused, he couldn't think straight. Tender hands pushed his shoulders back onto the bed, as the woman leaned over him, one of her hands now on his forehead.

The room was beginning to clear in front of his eyes, and he could finally recognize the figure sitting next to him.

"Miss Granger?" he asked uncertainly

"Thanks God you're awake. I was so scared," he could hear her voice shaking.

"What's happened?"

"I don't know. I just found you here, unconscious and bleeding. You were burning up. I'm so glad you're awake, I didn't know what else to do, I was about to go find some help."

"I… I don't…"

"Shhh," she interrupted "you need to rest now. Take this, it will help you sleep," she said, as she carefully lifted his head and helped him drink from a glass. Just a few more seconds and everything went dark again.

_He was back in the __black room. He didn't want to be there._

_He was screaming again, and he could hear his Master laughing._

"_You said someone told them you were going."_

"_Yes, My Lord," he said. Perhaps if he kept talking he wouldn't hurt him anymore. "I had told you I thought there was a spy among us, Sir."_

"_Who?" he asked, but his voice didn't show any interest._

"_I think it was Nott, Sir. He tried to kill me when I attacked one of them."_

"_Nott is dead."_

"_Yes, Master. I had to do it to stop him."_

"_Well, that's extremely convenient, isn't it, Severus?"_

"_I'm telling you the truth, Sir."_

"_Even if you are, you still were the one in charge of the mission. I've lost many followers, and got nothing in return." Another curse aimed at him and his screams filled the room again._

"Professor."

The voice sounded so far away he could barely hear it. He felt warm hands on his face again, then the voice grew closer, and he slowly opened his eyes.

"Professor, wake up."

"Wha… where am I?"

"We're in your house in Ireland, don't you remember coming here?"

"What's happened?" he asked, as he carefully tried to get up from the bed. Pain shot through his body as he did it, and she helped him sit, leaning him against the headboard.

"You were twisting in bed and screaming. I think you were dreaming."

"What are you doing here?" she looked a bit taken aback at first but then answered in a shy voice.

"Well, I hadn't heard from you in a few days and was worried. I came here to see if you were alright."

"Days? How long has it been?"

"Well, I came here five days after the attack."

"Five days?" he asked, shocked

"Well, yes. I had been looking for you before that, but I didn't think of coming here till then," she answered, sounding guilty "that was almost two days ago."

"What?"

"You were unconscious when I found you, barely breathing. I was so scared." She whispered the last part, looking down at the floor. She took a deep breath and continued. "I didn't know what to do. There were some potions here, but they didn't have any tags on, so I didn't really know what they were. I found some ingredients and brewed a few potions myself, but I wasn't sure they would work."

"What potions?" he asked. His head was slowly starting to clear.

"Well, a few blood replenishing ones, since you had bled quite a lot. I also made basic healing potions and a few more for the pain. I found some helpful books on the library."

He looked down at himself. He was wearing only his underwear, but his skin was covered in a mixture of blood and potions.

"The problem was the fever wouldn't go away. You were hallucinating, I think. I tried a few more potions for it, but they just wouldn't work. I had decided I would have to go find you some help when you woke up."

They stayed in silence for a few moments, and then she finally sighed and stood up.

"You really should get some more rest. I'll go downstairs and make something to eat; you'll need your strength." She was just walking out the door when she turned around and looked back at him "I'm really glad you're better," she said, and left before he had time to say anything else.

A few minutes passed, or maybe more, he couldn't tell. He decided he needed to get up; he wasn't one to stay put.

Slowly he moved to the side of the bed and then stood up, ignoring the pain. He put on a robe and, leaning on the walls for support, he carefully made his way out the room and then down the stairs, almost tripping a few times.

By the time, he got to the kitchen he was sweating from the effort and shaking from the pain. The moment she heard him she ran to his side and helped him sit on one of the chairs.

"What were you thinking, walking down here all by yourself?" she said bossily, as she walked back to the sink.

He wasn't used to having anyone worry about him, and it was making him feel uncomfortable.

She put the food on the table in front of him and then went back to cleaning up the kitchen the Muggle way.

He wasn't sure what it was, it looked like some kind of soup, but as he started eating he realized just how hungry he was.

He had almost finished eating when she finally broke the silence. She turned around, leaned on the sink, and with a worried expression she asked

"Voldemort did this to you, didn't he?" he winced at the name, but answered anyway.

"What did you think would happen? You thought he would be pleased to hear so many Death Eaters had been caught, especially when I had told him we would certainly win? I'm lucky I'm still alive," his voice was cold, brisk, and he could see she was hurt by his manners.

"But he thinks you're faithful to him, doesn't he? Why would he hurt you?"

"You're so naïve. You think he cares about that? He tortured me for almost five days because I was in charge of the attack. If I hadn't convinced him Nott was the one who had warned the Order about the plan I would be long gone by now. That's just the way it is."

A few moments passed, and she kept staring at him, trying to understand.

"You can't go back," she said, her voice just above a whisper

"Of course I can, it's my job. You think it's the first time something like this happens to me? It's what you get when you're a spy."

"It shouldn't be like that."

He simply looked away. He couldn't bring himself to answer. She didn't need to know about all the bad things that happened to people. She should be with her friends, living a normal life. Away from him.

"I'll need your help with some potions. I can't brew them myself but I'll give you the instructions," he said, changing the subject

"Of course," she answered quickly.

They spent the next few hours busy, barely talking to each other, and for that, he was grateful. The new potions would heal the remaining wounds and take away the pain, and he took them gladly. That was all he needed. She helped him back up the stairs and onto the bed, and he quickly fell asleep.

By the time he woke up the sky was dark again. He tentatively moved his arms and legs and was glad to find the pain was gone. He took a deep breath and got up. He needed a shower, badly.

He was already inside his bathroom, his clothes gone, before he heard the water running. He looked up and saw her figure through the glass.

He should just leave and come back later when she was finished, he told himself, but another voice in his head, one he rarely listened to, told him he should get in there with her. He surely deserved it after what he'd been through. It didn't have to mean anything, it would be just physical. He was probably still a bit confused after everything that had happened, because he decided to listen to that little voice.

He slowly stepped into the shower, noiselessly, and felt her jump as he put his arms around her. A sneer was already on his face as she turned around, her chest heaving.

"You scared me," she said, scowling, but any trace of anger left her face as he leaned in to kiss her.

After only a few seconds, she broke the kiss. "You're all dirty," she said, pushing a lock of hair back behind his ear and pulling him under the water. Her hands were soon all over his body, caressing until there was no trace of blood left.

Even after he was already clean, her hands kept roaming, and soon found their way down to his already throbbing erection. He felt her fingers close around him, slowly moving up and down.

He rested his head against the wall and watched her face through hooded eyes. She was looking intently at him, taking in his every reaction, repeating any movement that seemed to give him pleasure. Soon she picked up a pace that had him hissing and gasping uncontrollably, and he could see the smug look on her face.

"Enough," he finally groaned, when he felt he could hold back no more. He grasped her by the shoulders and pushed her against the cold wall, trapping her with his body. He crashed his lips on hers in what felt like a mind-blowing kiss, as he let his hands wander through her body. He kissed his way down the side of her jaw and her neck, nibbling as he moved to her breasts. She buried her fingers in his hair and pushed him closer, arching against him at the same time, and he knew the smug smile on his face was just like the one he'd seen on her earlier.

His lips went back to her neck but his hands moved lower, reaching her core. He started rubbing her clit, but stopped as he felt her orgasm building up. He heard her groan in frustration, and after a few seconds, his thumb was moving again, stopping for the second time before she could reach her climax.

"Stop that already," she said irritably as she moved her arms around his thighs and pushed him closer to her.

"As you wish," he whispered in her ear and lifted both her legs, resting them around his waist as he entered her.

After just a few seconds, he felt her tense around him, crying out in ecstasy.

He started moving faster, and could hear her back hitting the wall with every thrust. She pulled his head closer and kissed him, their tongues fighting and their bodies moving as one.

He felt her hands on his back, her nails sinking in his skin, and he had to admit he loved the feeling. Her legs drawing him closer, deeper, her head pushed back, her eyes closed and a moan escaping her lips as he bit the sensitive spot behind her ear.

It felt like time had stopped, like there was nothing but the two of them there and then, nothing else mattered. He had never felt that way, but he was just too amazed to feel scared.

She was tensing around him again, her muscles clenching and driving him crazy, and they both came at the same time, groaning and gasping for breath.

They stayed together like that for a few moments, recovering their strength, and finally he broke contact. He looked deep into her eyes and then moved closer to her face, their lips touching, just a light brush as he whispered 'thank you', and they both knew he wasn't talking about what had just happened.

Then he just turned around and stepped out of the shower, stopping just long enough to say, "I have to go back."


	11. invisible

She saw him leave the bathroom, still breathing hard, and she stepped out of the shower, careful not to slip. She walked after him, wrapping a towel around her body on the way, and by the time, she entered the room he was already half dressed.

"Why?" she asked, standing by the door

"Why what?" he said coldly, not even looking at her.

"Why do you have to go back?"

"Because it's my job, and it needs to be done."

"If I hadn't found you, you would be dead by now," she whispered, trying to understand.

"Probably, but that doesn't change anything. You and your friends still need the information only I can provide. There are things more important than life or death."

She wanted to tell him so many things. She didn't want him to go, to leave her there alone. She didn't want him to risk his life again like that, but still she knew he was right; he was the only one that could help and they needed it. It wasn't fair, he should have a choice but there wasn't any.

Resigned, she looked at him again, as she whispered, "Be careful."

He turned around and stared at her, his face expressionless but his eyes uneasy, searching her face for some kind of explanation to her words. There was none.

He finished getting dressed in silence, and she stood there as he did, unsure of what to do next.

"I have to go now, and you should go back to your friends," he said "you won't be safe until things go back to normal between the Dark Lord and me."

She saw something in his eyes then, something that looked like concern, but the next second it was gone, replaced by his usual cold look and with a loud pop he Apparated away.

The memory of what she had felt when she had found him came back to her, and a cold shiver ran through her spine. She couldn't go through that again.

The moment she had seen him laying on the floor fear had paralyzed her, and it took her everything she had to step closer, afraid of what she would find. After the first few seconds, logic had taken over, thankfully.

After checking that he was still alive and moving him to the bed, she had carefully taken off his clothes, trying to see why he was bleeding so much, and she gasped loudly when she saw it. Some cuts were superficial, but others were really deep, and there was barely an inch of skin unharmed. It had taken hours to brew the first potions, but finally she had managed to stop the bleeding. The healing potions would take care of some of the wounds, but it wasn't enough.

As she had told him, the main problem had been the fever, and she'd had no idea what to do about that. She knew she couldn't take him to the hospital, he would be sent to Azkaban if someone found him, or worse, and so she had spent hours in the library, trying to find something that could help him while she heard him screaming in the bedroom. She was pretty sure he was speaking, but she couldn't understand what he was saying. Every now and then, she caught words like Master or trap, but that was all.

The hours she had spent sitting next to him, waiting to see if he woke up, going through his books trying to find some potion that would help him and then trying to keep her pulse steady as she brewed it, scared she would make it worse if she messed up had been hell. She had finally resorted to the only Muggle remedy she could think of, cold water. Surprisingly, it seemed to work. She had been so relieved when he had finally woken up.

He had seemed a bit confused at first; he didn't seem to remember much of what had happened. She had been afraid he would be mad at her for going to the house looking for him, but he hadn't said a word about it. Instead, he had asked for her help with some potions he needed. He had even thanked her for helping him.

Shaking the memories away, she slowly made her way back to the bathroom, where she had left her clothes, and after getting dressed and drying her hair she did as told and Apparated back at headquarters.

Shortly after finding Snape she had owled them, telling them she would be away a day or two, because she didn't want them worked up and looking for her, but still as she entered the house she heard Mrs Weasley sigh loudly in relief. That woman never stopped worrying. She was instantly dragged into the kitchen, where the rest of the family and Harry were having dinner. He and Ron eyed her suspiciously, but said nothing.

She ate in a hurry, but waited politely until everyone else was finished before finally getting up and walking up the stairs. She heard footsteps behind her and prepared herself for what was to come, leaving the door to her room wide open and sitting on the bed. Harry and Ron walked in seconds later and closed the door behind them.

"You look terrible," Ron said

"I know." She hadn't slept in over two days, too worried about Snape to leave his bedside.

"You told my mother you were visiting your parents," he continued

"I didn't want her to worry, Ron."

"Well, I won't lie to her for you again. What if something had happened to you? We didn't even know where to find you."

"I know," she repeated, looking down at her hands

"We've been friends for years, Hermione, and we trust each other. At least that's what I thought until now."

"I do trust you, Harry, both of you, but…" her voice trailed off

"What have you gotten yourself into, Hermione?" he asked, both suddenly worried. "Are you in some kind of trouble?"

She took a few seconds before answering "No, I… I don't know," she sighed, "the only thing that matters is that I'm doing it to help you, Harry, to help all of us get rid of Voldemort."

"You're scaring me, Hermione," Ron whispered, "what are you up to? Where does all the information about the Death Eaters come from?"

"We've been through this already, and I explained it has to remain a secret, at least for now."

"We won't tell anyone, you know it," they both insisted

"I know, but I'd be in grave danger if anyone knew, even you two." She hated lying to them, but she knew it was the only way they'd stop asking.

"If you were in danger or needed our help you'd tell us, right?" Harry asked, locking eyes on her.

"Of course. I'd trust you with my life and you know it, but this isn't just about me. When the time comes I'll tell you everything, and I hope you'll understand."

They stared at her suspiciously, and Ron started asking something, but thankfully, Ginny chose that moment to enter the room. She walked over to her bed and then looked at the three of them carefully.

"Am I interrupting anything?"

"No, we were just leaving, goodnight," they answered.

"Goodnight Harry, Ron," Hermione said, smiling faintly at them.

As they left Ginny sat down next to Hermione.

"It looked like you needed to be alone."

"I do, thank you."

"You've been acting strange lately and they're worried about you. We all are. Are you ok?" she asked

"Yeah, I know. I'm just tired, that's all. A few hours' sleep and I'll be myself again," she lied, changing into her nightgown and slipping under the covers.

Tired as she was she couldn't sleep; she kept thinking about Snape, wondering where he was and if he was alright.

There was no fooling herself anymore. She might have thought it was just a silly crush at first, but now she knew she really felt something for him. She knew it the second she found him, knew it by the way her entire body shook with fear when she thought he was dead, as she touched him, trying to see if he was breathing. She wasn't sure exactly what it was yet, but she knew it was something she hadn't felt before.

'But what about him?' she asked herself. She had no idea what he felt about her. He wanted her that much she could tell from the way he looked at her, the way he touched her, kissed her, but was there anything else? The man was a mystery, that's all she knew for sure.

He was nice to her at times, and when he was like that, he made her feel he cared about her, as if she was important. She felt safe with him. Then, when she least expected it, he was cold again, acting like he was trying to hurt her on purpose. That man had her mystified.

It was with those thoughts in mind that she finally fell asleep, the sun already shining through the window. She woke to the sound of Ginny getting dressed, only a few hours later, and decided she too should head down for breakfast. Better act normal, she thought to herself. She certainly didn't need any more attention.

Yawning she walked down the stairs and into the kitchen, careful to choose a place to sit as far from Harry and Ron as she could without being too obvious.

She wasn't hungry, so after nibbling absentmindedly on a toast for a few minutes she made her way to the library, saying she wanted to look something up in one of the books. She was glad the excuse still worked.

As she was searching the shelves, trying to decide what book she would read she heard footsteps behind her, and she turned around, expecting to find one of her friends with fresh questions she couldn't answer, but there was no one there.

Thinking she was probably so tired, she was imagining things she went back to finding a book when she felt something tug on her dress. She turned around again, starting to feel scared when she was pushed flat against the shelves by an invisible force. She tried to scream for help, but soon a hand covered her mouth and then a familiar face appeared out of thin air. Snape looked at her, an evil grin on his face as he lifted the invisibility cloak he was wearing and covered her too with it.

"Don't scream," he whispered before nibbling her earlobe, making her moan. She couldn't believe the way her body responded to him.

She nodded and he removed his hand from her mouth, replacing it with his lips for a brief kiss.

"What are you doing here?" she asked, trying to think clearly.

"I needed to speak to you, there's…"

They both stiffened and fell silent as they heard voices approaching. She could see over his shoulder Harry and Ron walking into the library and sitting by the chess set.

"I thought Hermione said she'd be here," she heard Harry say looking around.

"She did. Maybe she went back to bed; she looked like she hadn't slept for weeks."

"I'm really worried about her, you know. We have to do something."

"Like what, follow her around to see what she's doing? We can't do that."

"I know, but we can't just…" she never heard the rest of the words, too distracted by the hand slowly moving up her thigh.

She tried to stop him, make him remove his hand, but he just pushed her harder against the shelves, his lips on her neck.

"Stop that, they'll hear us," she hissed

"Then you'll have to keep very quiet," he whispered back as his hand reached her knickers, pushing them aside.

"No, please. If they find you here…"

"You can't fool me," he said, in a voice that made her knees tremble "I can feel how aroused you are. The thought of being here with me, your friends so close," he slipped a finger inside her and she had to bite her arm to stop from groaning. She threw her head back when his thumb moved over her clit, biting her lip.

"What would they think, if they saw you here, writhing under your former professor's touch?" she didn't know why, but she found his words incredibly arousing. The risk of being found out, of knowing she was doing something forbidden, and right under their noses. It was too much.

He muffled her moans with his mouth as her orgasm hit her, his fingers trapped inside of her as her hips buckled. Before she even had time to calm down, she felt him opening his trousers, and then lifting her high up, while moving her legs around his waist. She could feel his erection against her core, barely touching, teasing her as his lips found hers again in a heated kiss. She couldn't take it anymore and she pushed herself down on him, making him hiss and pull her hips closer.

"Did you hear something?" she heard one of her friends ask, she didn't even know which one. She could feel the shelves behind her back, the books moving with every thrust, and she could only pray they wouldn't fall. There was no stopping now.

Her fingers were aching from gripping his shoulders hard as he moved faster and deeper inside of her. She knew her friends were there, knew they'd find them if they made any noise, but keeping silent was getting harder by the minute.

She felt herself tense again, the pleasure spreading through her body, and she knew he was feeling the same. Without breaking the kiss they both came, muffled groans and ragged breaths the only sound as their bodies slowed down.

After just a few seconds, he took her hand and they slowly walked to the main door, making sure the cloak covered them both. After checking no one was around, she opened it and stepped out.

"There was something you needed to tell me," she whispered, breaking the uncomfortable silence.

"Yes. The Death Eaters that were arrested in Grimmauld Place."

"What abut them?" she asked

"Make sure they send them to Azkaban."

"What? Why? The ministry no longer sends Death Eaters there, they won't risk them escaping."

"I know that, but they have to send them there, it's important."

She looked at him for a few moments. "I'm not sure I can do that, I don't have that kind of influence."

"But you know people who do."

"I'll try," she finally said.

"Good. By the way, you forgot Potter's cloak in my house yesterday, figured you'd want it back."

"Thank you," she said, smiling.

"You still have the parchment I gave you?"

"Yes."

"Use it if you need to contact me. You can't go back to my house unless I tell you to, no matter what."

"Ok" she said, looking down at her feet. She felt his finger on her chin, and as she lifted her face, she felt his lips on hers once more. After a few seconds, he took a step back and Apparated away.

She took a deep breath and walked back inside, taking the cloak off only when she reached her bedroom. How on earth was she supposed to get those men sent there?

She lay down on the bed and quickly fell asleep, with a worried frown and a sated smile.


	12. followed

The first place he went back to in London was Spinner's End. He didn't really like the house, even if most people who knew him would say it fit him perfectly. It was cold and impersonal, but the perfect place for working. It had wards protecting it, and no neighbours around, so it was as safe as it could get without drawing too much attention. He needed a place to stay, one where he could be found if needed, and it was also a good way to keep any other house a secret.

As he entered, he carefully searched every room, making sure no one had broken in while he'd been away, and was relieved to notice everything seemed to be in place. He opened the hidden door behind the wall of books and walked up the narrow staircase that led to his potions lab.

Without wasting a moment, he went to check on the potion he had been working on. The colour and thickness were correct, as was the silver mist swirling above it. It was a good thing the potion still needed to rest for a few more days before the last step, or else it would have been ruined by now.

It was more of an experiment actually, and he had been working hard on it for months. If the potion worked correctly it could help Potter find the remaining Horcruxes, but he still needed more time to finish it and test it.

He was tired, but there was no time to waste, and so after quickly changing his clothes he Apparated at headquarters.

The other Death Eaters already knew what had happened, and as he walked in they looked at him with a mixture of surprise at him being alive and curiosity as to why he was there again. In his place, most of them would have fled by now. Cowards.

He knew where to find his Master as he rarely left his study. As he knocked on the door and stepped inside, he saw a feigned look of delight on his face.

"Severus, it's good to see you here. And quite healthy I might add."

"Thank you, Master," he merely replied

"So what brings you here? After our last encounter I wasn't expecting a visit, at least not so soon."

"I came because my place is here, Master. I'm a faithful Death Eater," he said, bowing slightly

"Of course you are."

They stayed in silence for a few moments and he could feel his Lord trying to enter his mind. He showed him what he wanted to see, him alone at his place and slowly recovering from his wounds. He was careful not to let a single image of the girl cross his mind.

"I know I failed you, Master, and I will do anything in my power to make up for it."

A cruel smile formed on his lipless mouth before saying, "Oh, I'm sure you will."

Another few moments of tense silence filled the room.

"Have you spoken to your witch yet?"

"Only for a short moment, Sir," he said, unsure of what he wanted to know

"Has she said anything about the other night?"

"She confirmed my suspicions. Nott was working for them."

"And why didn't you find that out earlier, before I lost those men?"

"She didn't know, Sir. Apparently, only a few people from the Order knew it. They had been waiting for an attack but hadn't told anyone about it until the last possible minute."

"Is there anyone else working for them?"

"Not that she knows of."

"Very well. Go back to whatever you're working on now, I'll call you if I need anything from you," he dismissed him in a bored tone.

He started walking out of the room but then stopped, an idea suddenly crossing his mind.

"I asked her to find out where they're keeping the men they captured," he said, turning back around. He could see a glint of interest cross his Master's eyes.

"Is that so?"

"Yes, Sir. I thought it could be useful."

"Very well, go talk to her and report back to me as soon as you have any news."

"I will, Master. Thank you," he said, bowing again and leaving the room.

He quickly left and Apparated by his place in Ireland once more, hoping she would still be there. He hadn't been in that house so often since… well, never.

He wasn't surprised to find she had already left by the time he got there, but noticed something strange fallen by his bed. The girl had left the invisibility cloak behind. It was too late to contact her, he decided. He'd get some sleep and talk to her early in the morning. The cloak would be most helpful.

Telling the Dark Lord he could find out where the Death Eaters were being kept had been risky, but he needed something to offer his Master. It was the only way he would be safe until he gained his trust back. He had to prove he could still be useful. And most importantly, by doing that, he had made sure she would be safe too. There would be no need to hurt her as long as she could provide information.

As morning came, he took the cloak and went to see her. He had followed her to headquarters once, over a week ago now, and so he knew where to find her.

There were wards protecting the house, but not enough to keep him out. Making sure he was completely covered by the cloak he carefully opened the door and crept inside. He followed the voices and found a bunch of red heads sitting on a table eating breakfast. She was sitting there as well, but not talking to anybody.

He waited patiently until she was finished, and followed her as she left the small kitchen and walked into the library.

Covering her with the cloak as well, he had started saying what he needed from her, but soon stopped. He just couldn't believe the effect that woman had on him. He found it so hard to concentrate whenever she was around, all he could think of was how good it was to kiss her, how soft her skin felt, how arousing it was when she writhed and moaned under his touch. Her friends were there, sitting just a few feet away. He knew it was crazy, but couldn't help himself.

He had finally made his way back out of the house unnoticed, and managed to tell her what he needed.

By the time he got back to his place a plan was starting to form on his mind. Instead of asking her where they were keeping the prisoners, he told her he needed them sent to Azkaban. Maybe he could help some of them escape, the least dangerous ones, and gain his Master's trust back, and at the same time, he wouldn't risk exposing the real place they were being held by the Ministry.

For hours he went through everything he knew about the prison, trying to think of better ways in and out, and how he would manage to let only some of them out, not all. It was almost dark already when he noticed the warm parchment on his pocket. She was trying to talk to him.

'Are you there?' she had written

'Yes.'

'What you asked, it can't be done.' He noticed she wasn't giving much away on the parchment. She had clearly learned her lesson after Malfoy had pretended to be him to lure her into that cabin.

'Why not?'

'They won't risk them escaping, especially when I can't even tell them what will happen or why they should help me.'

'You can't tell them that.'

'I don't even know it myself.'

'We'll have to meet again, come up with another plan. Can you get to London on your own?' he scribbled.

'Not tonight, they'll be keeping an eye on me.'

'Tomorrow morning?'

'Probably.'

'Go to Kings Cross. There's a flat three blocks south, one with a golden door right next to a small pharmacy. Third floor, first door to your left. I'll be waiting for you there, around 10. Do not Apparate and don't be late.' It took her a few seconds to answer this time.

'I have to go, I'm not alone.'

That was just his luck, just when he'd come up with a way to get things back to normal. It had been so much easier when it had been him dealing with both sides directly. Back then, he could get things done himself, but now there were just too many people involved.

Well, at least he had the whole night to think of something new.

Thinking about anything other than her proved to be a challenge, however, especially late at night. The memories of the day kept coming back. Still, there was no denying those dreams instead of the usual nightmares were certainly a good change.

He had always been able to control his impulses, but around her, suddenly he didn't want to. That was a problem and he knew it. He kept trying to be cold, to push her away, but it wasn't as easy as it should've been.

With all that in mind, he wasn't surprised he didn't get much sleep. He was already on the flat by sunrise, and he was getting impatient. After the fifth cup of tea, he finally heard the door creak open. He slowly walked to the kitchen door and glanced that way. She had poked her head around the door, her wand out and pointing out front.

"Miss Granger," he called, and saw her visibly relax at his words.

He heard her footsteps as she followed his voice and stepped inside the kitchen.

"I can't stay long; I'm supposed to meet Harry and Ron in the Leaky Cauldron in an hour."

"I told you to come alone."

"I know, but Harry said he needed new robes, and insisted on coming with me."

"Then we better hurry," he said

He had been facing the window as they spoke, and when he turned around, he couldn't help but stare at her. She had her hair up in a ponytail, was wearing a light summer dress and he thought to himself that she looked breathtaking.

She clearly noticed, and took a few steps closer, looking at him intently as she said

"I'm not sure I'll be able to get much from them without giving some explanations. They've already done too much out of trust."

He stepped even closer, and he could feel her breathing faster.

"Then you'll have to explain part of it. This has to be done, it's too important." Their lips were almost touching as he kept talking.

"The problem is the Dark Lord still has spies among Ministry workers, and I don't know who they are. You'll have to be sure only a selected few know what we're planning."

"Right." Her gaze kept moving from his eyes to his lips and back again.

"This is important," he whispered, trying to control himself.

"Yes," she breathed, closing her eyes for a moment, but he felt her body inch closer to him.

Well, she clearly wanted it, and so did he. What was there to think about?

He closed the distance between their mouths, tongues caressing as their hands pulled each other closer. He kissed her neck, then the soft spot behind her ear and he heard her moan and tilt her head to the side, giving him more room. He grabbed her by the waist and swung her up onto the desk, her legs soon circling his hips, pulling him to her, as her lips found his once more. His hands on her thighs, pushing the dress up, their mouths melting together once more

The sound of the door creaking open brought them back to their senses. They jumped apart and he quickly stepped back and reached for his wand, his other hand pointing behind the open door, telling her to hide there and keep quiet.

He hadn't told anyone he'd be there, and had made sure no one had followed him. Whoever that was, it certainly meant trouble.

Two hooded figures entered at a crawl, and he was about to curse both of them when he noted one of the figures was wearing glasses, and he could see a lock of red hair by the other's neck. It wasn't long before he figured who they were.

He edged away from them as he decided what to do; he couldn't let them see him.

They couldn't Apparate in or out of the apartment, but neither could he. The only way out was the door they'd come through, and there was no way he could walk out without them noticing.

Taking a deep breath, he did the only thing he could do, making sure they wouldn't see him he sneaked into the other room, pointed his wand at them and watched them fall to the floor.


	13. the meeting

After several minutes of thinking what exactly she would say, she finally woke them with a flick of her wand.

Confused, they looked at her towering over them, hands on her hips and looking like she was trying hard not to curse them.

"What on earth do you think you're doing here?" she raged before they could say a word.

"We…we," Ron stammered

"We were worried, thought you might need some help," Harry continued, and had the decency to look slightly ashamed.

"If I needed your help I would've asked for it. How did you find me here?" When none of them answered, she continued, "Did you follow me?"

She heard Ron mumble something under his breath.

"What was that?"

"We saw you writing on that parchment yesterday, it said you were meeting someone here."

"So you were spying on me and thought it would be great fun to show up and mess everything up, didn't you?"

"We didn't mean…"

"And what exactly _did_ you mean? I asked you please to stay out of this and you wouldn't listen. What do I have to do to make you understand? This isn't school, it's real life. You can't go meddling in other people's business like this every time someone refuses to tell you what you want to know." She let silence fill the room again before saying worriedly

"God, if someone saw you come here…"

"No one saw us," Ron said "We checked."

"Oh, you checked! Well, that makes me feel so much better. There's no way any Death Eater could've seen you come in here if you checked," she mocked. Snape had told her no one had followed him, and after he'd stunned Harry and Ron he'd made sure there wasn't anyone else around, but she wanted to scare them, to make sure they wouldn't do something like that again.

"You could've gotten us all killed," she said, and they just looked at her in silence.

"We have to go, it isn't safe here. Get up."

"Hermione, we"

"Don't," she interrupted "I don't want to hear anything from you two. I thought you trusted me, I can't believe you did this. I'm so disappointed in you."

They looked ashamed, and she felt her anger start to falter. "Let's go," she said, trying to sound upset as she opened the door and stepped out.

"You know, there's something I don't think you understand," Harry said as they followed her out.

"What?"

"We didn't come here to find out who you were meeting, or what you were discussing, or because we didn't trust you. We came here because we love you; that is the only reason. We knew you'd be meeting someone dangerous, and even when we were sure you'd be mad at us for coming, we couldn't let anything happen to you. No matter what," he said in a soft voice, just as they left the building. They both looked at her for a second before Apparating away.

Well, she certainly hadn't expected that. Now she was the one feeling guilty about what had happened. She shook those feelings away, at least for the time being. She had a lot to do.

She walked back to the Leaky Cauldron, and then entered Diagon Alley, heading back to headquarters, barely noticing anything around.

After Snape had stunned Harry and Ron, he had hurriedly explained his new plan. She had never met anyone so intelligent, and she was sure his idea could work. The only weak spot was her part, getting the Order to do what he'd asked. That would prove to be a challenge, and the fact that he'd said he trusted she could do it only made it worse.

She had approached the entire Order during a meeting the previous evening, asking them to send the prisoners to Azkaban. That had been a bad idea. They'd started asking questions she didn't have an answer for, and when she'd said she couldn't tell much they'd gone back to wanting to know who was passing the information. Last time she had been lucky, they had given up on the subject after a few minutes. This time they only stopped after she left the room, and she could hear them from the hallway still discussing it, some even questioning what side she was fighting for.

If she wanted the plan to work, she would have to talk to one of them alone, and by the time she was standing back at headquarters she had decided which one it would be.

She stepped in and walked silently up to her room. She could hear Harry, Ron and Ginny talking in the library, and decided she didn't want to confront them again just yet. She skipped lunch and spent there most of the afternoon, only leaving when she heard voices downstairs. The meeting was finally over.

She rushed down the stairs, and just as she was hurriedly entering the kitchen she painfully collided with someone and fell to the floor. She looked up at the man she'd hit as he lost his balance and almost fell, too.

"You should be more careful, Hermione," Kingsley smiled as he stretched out his hand to help her up. She gladly took it and mumbled "Sorry." just as her face went red.

"Are you staying for dinner?" Mrs Weasley was asking, and Hermione was glad for the distraction. When she let go of Kingsley's hand he looked down at it frowning, and then back up at her.

The pleading look on her face was probably what kept him from asking anything as he put his hand into his pocket, the piece of paper with it.

"Kingsley?"

"Oh, Molly. No, I can't stay tonight. Lots of work is piling up at the office, got to take care of that."

"Well, maybe tomorrow then. Hermione, dear, help Fred and George set the table, will you?"

"Of course," she said, and walked over to where the twins were standing. Well, the first part of her plan had certainly gone better than she had expected. She could only hope the rest of it would go down that well.

She ate in silence, but everyone else was talking loudly and no one seemed to notice her. Harry and Ron had sat right across from her, and she knew they were trying to catch her eye, talk to her, probably to apologize so that things could go back to normal. She did her best to avoid them; she had other things to think about. There would be time for them later.

As they finished dinner, she went back to her room. She changed her clothes, tied her hair and put on a dark robe.

She knew her friends well enough, and was sure even after what had happened that morning they would keep an eye on her, so instead of trying to hide she just walked back down the stairs, making sure they'd see her leave. They wouldn't dare follow her again.

"You're leaving, Hermione?" It was Ginny's voice coming from the kitchen.

"Yes," she simply replied

"You shouldn't go out this late, dear," Mrs Weasley walked over to where she was standing, the familiar worried look on her face.

"I just feel like taking a walk, no need to worry."

"Why don't you go with one of the boys? I'm sure they'd love to go with you," she said, looking at them as if she was waiting for them say so.

"There's no need, really," she assured her, and glanced at Harry and Ron, silently daring them to say something "I'm meeting some friends from school later on, so I won't be alone."

Mrs Weasley didn't look convinced, but she didn't say anything else either.

"I have to go now, or I'll be late," she told her smiling, and she turned around and left before any of them had time to say something else.

By the time she entered the Leaky Cauldron, she was so nervous she could feel her knees shaking slightly. As she walked in, she searched the room, considering the possibilities, and finally settling on a table close to the door. She sat down, her back to the entrance, and checked her watch. She was just three minutes early. Her eyes quickly surveyed the place again, and they finally settled on a figure sitting at a table on the other end of the room, by the stairs. The hood covered most of his face, but his black eyes soon found hers. Him being there made her feel nervous and confident at the same time. They stared at each other for a few seconds before she noticed someone walk by and sit on the chair in front of her.

"Hello, Hermione," the voice said, and her eyes quickly darted away from Snape.

"Kingsley," she smiled "thanks for coming."

"Well, the note said it was important. I wonder what it is you couldn't tell me back at the house."

"Well, it's complicated."

"What is?"

"You're Head of the Auror Department now."

"Yes," he answered, eyes suddenly narrowed

"I need your help with some things."

"Like what?"

"You remember what I asked for the other night? During the meeting?" she said, leaning closer and whispering

"You wanted the prisoners moved to Azkaban. We've already told you it can't be done, the Ministry would never allow it."

"I know, but…" they were interrupted as a young wizard approached their table. They ordered drinks that were set on the table after a few seconds. The men then asked them if they needed anything else.

"No, thank you," Kingsley said, and then waited in silence as he walked out of earshot again. Hermione sighed before continuing.

"Two of the prisoners are under the Imperius curse."

"How do you know that?"

"They didn't attack us of their own free will. They're the least dangerous ones, and could be very useful." she said ignoring his previous question.

"Very useful?"

"What I'm about to say to you, you can't tell anyone else about it, at least for now. You have to promise me that," she said, aware of the pleading tone in her voice.

"Why is that?" God, that man kept answering with another question!

"Kingsley, please," she sighed.

"Very well, I won't tell a soul. Now how can they be useful to us?"

"If Voldemort found a way to get some of his men back, he'd do it."

"What are you suggesting?" he asked suspiciously.

"And if he succeeded," she continued, ignoring his question again "he'd be very grateful to the person that provided said details."

"Hermione…"

"He would trust that person, and we could get important information," she finished.

"Hermione, what have you gotten yourself into?" he asked her, clearly worried.

"The kind of information that could help us defeat him."

She saw something in his eyes, an expression she couldn't define.

"Show me your arm, Hermione," he suddenly said.

"My arm?" she asked and stared at him, not knowing what he meant.

"Just let me see it," he repeated when she didn't move.

"You can't be serious," she whispered in shock as she realized what he was thinking.

"I am," he said simply

"I can't believe this," she mumbled, as she did what he asked

"If it isn't you doing it, then you're working with a Death Eater. Who is it?"

"I can't tell you that," she answered

"You can't trust those men, Hermione; you should know it by now; especially after Snape." She did her best to keep her face neutral as she heard the name.

"All the information he gave me so far was true."

"So that's how you found out about the spy, and the attack." She simply nodded.

"Even if it was helpful, what you're doing is too dangerous."

"I'd do anything to help Harry win this war."

"You wouldn't be the first to be blinded by good intentions."

"I trust him, he wants to help us." He sighed loudly, but apparently decided to go back to the main subject.

"What is it that you want then?"

"If those two men were taken somewhere for say… interrogation, how would they be transported?"

"Probably with a portkey."

"Don't you ever use broomsticks?"

"Only when we're headed to a secret location. Can't risk using portkeys then."

"And if you're flying, it's probably harder to guard them, right? There's a chance they could be taken by someone if they attacked you on the way."

"What are you suggesting?"

"After we captured all those Death Eaters, well, let's just say Voldemort wasn't very pleased with the man that planned the attack, so now he's not in the best position to spy for us. If he told Voldemort some of his men were being transported, and it was possible to get them…"

"He'd be back on his good graces, is that what you're saying?"

"Yes," she said simply

"But two more Death Eaters would be on the loose."

"They're not really Death Eaters, and if the plan works correctly we would capture even more."

"How?" he asked, and she thought he sounded slightly interested

"Well, if Voldemort got them back he would question them; do anything to find out where the other men were. If one of them recognized the place they were being held, maybe after seeing something familiar as they left, Voldemort would know it."

"You're saying we should set up another attack like the one at Grimmauld Place?"

"Exactly like it."

"Won't that put your Death Eater friend in a bad situation again?"

"Not if he's not the one planning it," she said, ignoring the tone he'd used when saying friend.

"That's a lot you're asking, really."

"If we plan it carefully, we wouldn't risk that much."

"And what if he betrayed you, what if he's using you to get to us, to Harry?"

"He's not. I'd never put Harry in danger and you know it. I trust him completely, I've told you that."

"Why do you trust him?"

"That's not important," she said curtly

"I have to know who he is."

"No you don't. He'll talk to me and I'll talk to you. That's how it'll work for now."

"Why just you?"

"There are spies still working at the Ministry, Kingsley, and he doesn't know who they are. He can't risk being exposed."

"Then why are you telling me all this?"

"Because I need help with this, and I trust you."

"Who else knows about him?"

"No one and it has to remain this way. You heard what they said about me yesterday, after I left the meeting."

"Forget about that. We all trust you, Hermione. We know you're trying to help."

"So you'll do it?" He was silent for a few minutes, thinking about everything she'd just said.

"I will, but I'll need more answers."

"You'll have them when the time's right; I can't tell you anything else until then."

"There will be a lot of planning to do; more people will have to know about it."

"Just tell them what they have to do; they don't need to know the real reason."

Her eyes suddenly flicked over to the other side of the room, to the hooded figure that was getting up. Their eyes locked and then he slowly lifted a hand, showing her what looked like an old key, and then placing it back on the table before starting up the stairs.

"I hope you're right," Kingsley said, and she looked back at him.

"So you'll help me?"

"Yes."

"Thank you," she smiled and he smiled back at her

"Just be careful, will you?" he said

"I will."

"I'll see you tomorrow then."

"Good night"

He left a few coins on the table and then got up and walked out, squeezing her shoulder on his way out.

She waited a few moments and then stood up too. She made sure he was gone and then walked over to the stairs, taking the key he'd left on the table as she did.

There was a number printed on the key, and she searched for the correct room. She stood by the door for a few seconds, then took a deep breath and opened it.


	14. we have a problem

Sitting on the bed, he heard footsteps approaching, and then stopping on the hallway for a few seconds. He lifted his wand and pointed it at the door, just as he heard the tingle of a key and saw the knob turn.

The door opened slowly and she stepped in, closing it behind her. The only light in the room came from a single candle on a small desk and he gave her a few moments so her eyes could adjust.

"You hadn't told me you'd come," she said, leaning on the door

"Last minute decision," he simply said, and it was true. He had spent all afternoon in his house, trying to get some research done, but found he could think of nothing other than her. When she'd used the parchment to tell him whom she'd be meeting and where he simply decided to be there too, thinking it could come in handy if she had trouble convincing Kingsley to help them, but knowing full well he'd only show himself to the man if there was absolutely no other possibility. That way, he'd also know the Auror's answer right away and decide what to do next accordingly.

That was the reason he was there, not because he wanted to see her; of course not.

"I'm glad you did, I was rather nervous," she smiled shyly.

"What did he say, will he help?" he asked, going straight to the point

"Yes, but I'm not sure for how long. He does want to know who you are."

"What did you tell him?"

"Well, mostly I said that we needed…"

Then he wasn't listening anymore. His gaze was fixed on her lips, but instead of hearing what she said he just kept thinking about what those lips could do, about how much he wanted to touch them with his own, to kiss them until they were red and swollen, and she was breathing heavily.

He looked into her eyes and noticed she wasn't looking back at him but somewhere slightly to his left, one of her hands absentmindedly playing with her hair. His eyes travelled back down and he couldn't help wondering what she wore under the cloak.

'Control yourself,' he scolded himself mentally. He was a grown man, and it was time he started acting like one, especially around her.

"… used, and he said they usually took them with portkeys, but he could arrange it so that they'd use broomsticks."

"That should make them more vulnerable," he said

"That's what I thought, but it'll still be hard to make it look real."

"I'll be leading the attack; I can take care of that."

"We still have to decide where…"

He was gone again, he couldn't help it. He knew he should be listening, knew it was important, but the second she moved her hand down and her fingers started tracing her neck he was lost. He couldn't take his eyes off her throat, mesmerized by the soft, white skin her fingers were caressing, willing to give up anything to take its place that very moment. He knew how sensitive she was, remembered how she reacted when it was his tongue playing there.

His body was aching for her again, and he grunted at the memory of that very morning, when they had been interrupted.

He closed his eyes and took a deep breath, trying to clear his mind.

"Professor, are you alright?"

"Yes, what were you saying?"

"I was saying he will decide the route they will take and then contact me tomorrow morning to let me know."

"Then you'll have to tell me everything he says as soon as possible. I will have to inform the Dark Lord and make the necessary arrangements."

"Of course. Well, is there anything else you need?" she asked, her weight shifting from one foot to the other nervously.

"No, I can take care of the rest"

"I should probably go then, it's getting late," she said, but didn't move

"You're right," he agreed, eyes locked on hers.

She finally turned around and reached for the doorknob, but it was as if she was moving in slow motion.

'Stay. Don't move. Just let her go. She has to go and you have things to do, just stay put and watch her leave. It's the right thing to do and you know it,' he told himself, but as he made up his mind his body started moving on its own, and before he knew it he was standing behind her, his hand resting on hers and keeping the door closed.

The sweet smell of her hair made his mind blur and he knew there was no turning back. With his hands on her hips, he turned her around, and then he slowly tilted his head and moved closer, his lips finally touching the side of her neck. He felt her body arch closer, a soft moan escaping her lips.

A hand against his chest pushed him back as her fingers fumbled with the buttons of his cloak, and soon it was lying around him on the floor. He stopped moving and watched her as she took his shirt off, biting her lower lip and smiling slightly as she did, her hands caressing all the skin they could reach.

As she started with his trousers, he pushed her hands away, and then opened her cloak, finally getting to see what she wore underneath it. He moved his hands to her waist and then pulled up the top she was wearing and let it fall over the discarded robes. His lips travelled down her neck, almost reaching her breasts before he felt her tangle her fingers in his hair and pull his head up to her lips.

They kissed again. This time it was full of passion, desire, his hands on her hair, her arms around his waist, their lips and tongues the only thing moving. He took a step closer, trapping her body with his, grinding his hips against hers, moaning into the kiss and pulling her even closer.

His hands slowly made their way down her hips, caressing them slowly. As his fingers reached her inner thighs, he heard her chuckle lightly as she broke the kiss, their lips almost touching as she whispered, "That tickles."

"Good," he whispered back, and continued caressing until she finally pushed him away. "Stop that," she laughed, and with a slight groan, he did as told, his fingers now making their way upwards. Snaking under her skirt, he reached her knickers and stroked her through the fabric. He smiled to himself when he felt her moan, close her eyes and push her hips against his hand. He parted the material and touched her skin, his fingers soon slipping inside of her.

"Yes," he heard her breath as she lifted one leg and wrapped it around his waist, her mouth reaching for his again, nibbling his lower lip. Soon she was moaning uncontrollably, tilting her head back as he kissed her neck and asking him to move faster.

She bit his lip as she came, her arms around his shoulders, pulling him ever closer, and she was still panting when she lowered her hands and unbuckled his belt, pulled down the zip and reached inside his trousers, making him moan this time.

After just a few seconds he grasped her hand and pulled it away, pushing both her arms over her head and pinning them there with one hand. He pushed her body hard against the door with his own and waited a few seconds, watching her pant and struggle for more contact.

He entered her in one thrust, the only sound in the room that of skin against skin, their lips barely touching as he moved, fast, hard. She wrapped both legs around his hips, urging him to go deeper, and as he changed the angle and hit the right spot, he heard her groan in pleasure. Her muscles soon clamped around him, and she screamed in ecstasy again as his tongue circled one of her nipples. His thrusts became almost frantic as he came too, his lips back on hers, silencing their moans.

They only took a few minutes to calm down and then he was reaching for his clothes, quickly getting dressed as she did the same.

"You should go, it's getting late and they'll worry."

"Right," she simply said, not looking at him.

"About your friends, will they be a problem?"

"No, they won't do anything like that again."

"You have to be more careful, if they saw me…"

"I know," she interrupted "They won't." She didn't say anything else as she turned around to leave the room.

"There's something else I need to ask," he whispered

"What?" she asked, turning her head slightly, her hand still on the doorknob

"When they decide who will fly with the Death Eaters the day we'll attack, make sure you're not among them."

"What?" she asked, not fully understanding why he was saying it

"It could be dangerous, just stay away from it."

"I'll try," she answered coldly, and with that she left, but he could have sworn he saw a small smile form on her lips.

He covered his face with the hood again and waited a few minutes before walking down the stairs.

He had only taken a couple of steps into Muggle London when he felt someone watching. He stood still for a moment, his eyes searching the darkness, and then he saw the figure hiding behind a tree. A door open somewhere near and the light from the house let him take a better look at the black man standing there, a golden earring gleaming against his skin.

A group walked out the door and as they closed it darkness surrounded him again. They started walking down the street towards were he was standing so he couldn't just Apparate there. Without taking another second to think he turned around and walked back inside the Leaky Cauldron towards the other door, the one leading to Diagon Alley. He could hear hurried steps behind him and knew Kingsley was following him. He reached inside his robe and wrapped his fingers around his wand just in case, as he finally walked out the door. "Stop," he heard the man say close behind him, but he Apparated away the next second.

He entered his house and set extra wards on the door. He was sure the Kingsley hadn't seen his face, but he wasn't about to take chances.

He had been distracted, had made a mistake. He had always been careful, but lately…

There wasn't much he could do about the situation and he knew it. Once they followed his plan and arrested more Death Eaters they would probably trust him, but not until then. He should've known the man would try to follow him, to see who he was. He should've been more careful. It wouldn't happen again.

Now he knew Kingsley would help he had to make sure everything was ready, there would be no room for mistakes. Unlike the last time, now he had to take two Death Eaters back to his Lord. They would have to fight the Aurors guarding them, but he had to make sure none of them were hurt or they wouldn't help him again.

He only slept a few hours that night, his mind going through every part of the plan again and again.

As morning came he finally got up and took a long shower, knowing there wasn't much he could do until she wrote again with the rest of the information. It was almost noon when he felt the parchment warm up and read her message. He put on his robe and quickly Apparated by headquarters.

Before he knew it he was already entering his Master's studio, having no idea how he'd gotten there, so distracted in his own thoughts it felt like his feet had made the whole journey on their own.

"Severus, what brings you here?" Voldemort said without looking up, as usual.

"I have some information you might want to hear."

"So you have talked to the witch."

"Yes, Sir, and she had news about their prisoners. She couldn't find out where they're being kept, but she did hear something that could help us."

"And what would that be?"

"Two of them will be transported somewhere else for interrogation. She doesn't know where they're keeping them or where they'll be taken, but managed to hear they'd be using broomsticks and will fly over Hyde Park."

"And when will they do it?"

"Tomorrow, before sunrise."

"Good"

"I will make the necessary arrangements, Sir," he said, bowing

"No, Severus, you will not--not after what happened the last time. I will have someone else take care of that."

"Someone else?"

"Yes, Rodolphus will do it."

"Lestrange?" he asked

"Is there a problem, Severus?"

"Of course not, Master. If there's anything else you need."

"Just make sure he has all the information he needs."

"Yes, Master," he said, bowing again as he left the room

He made his way to the library and sat near the only window, away from the other Death eaters. He opened a book and placed the parchment inside, so that he could hide it if anyone walked by. He didn't have much time.

'We have a problem. Keep the parchment at hand and I will write again when I have more details,' he wrote and then hastily put it away as he saw Rodolphus Lestrange walk through the door. He got up and walked towards him.

"Snape, I believe we have a few things to discuss," he said.

Severus just nodded and walked back out of the library, trying to find a quiet room, Lestrange following him closely.


	15. Hyde Park

The man was driving her crazy, really. She thought she should be used to it by now, but the way his attitude kept changing…it was just too much.

Every time they were together it was like he couldn't keep his hands off her, but as soon as he was done he either ran or kicked her out. That wasn't the worst part. Sometimes, he acted as if he really cared, like just a few moments earlier, when he had asked her to stay away from the attack because it would be too dangerous.

The possibility of what they were doing being real, of it meaning something to him, scared her for some reason. She didn't want to share those feelings either. Fear of losing those she loved was bad enough as it was; caring for someone who lived his entire life in danger would be too much, but she knew there wasn't a lot she could do about it anymore. Her heart raced every time she thought about him; her skin tingled every time he touched her. What was it about that dark dangerous man that attracted her so much? Well, maybe it was just that; the mystery that surrounded him, the unexplainable desire to see the human being she knew he hid behind the cold and evil man's mask.

Maybe, just maybe, there was no reason at all; it just happened.

Knowing it was already too late, and that walking alone all the way back to headquarters wouldn't be wise, she simply stepped out of the tavern and Apparated away.

She opened the door and entered headquarters, trying to keep silent since she really didn't want to wake anyone on her way up. As she walked, she saw light coming from the open kitchen and decided to stop there first, thinking it was probably Mrs Weasley waiting to make sure she returned home safely before finally going to bed.

"Oh, hello," she said, surprised to see Remus Lupin sitting there instead.

"Hello, Hermione," he simply answered.

"I wasn't expecting to find anyone still up this late," she said, as she sat down beside him.

"Well, I couldn't sleep; what's your excuse?" he asked, smiling as he offered her some of the chocolate pie he was having.

"I just got back, really. When I saw the light on I thought it would be Mrs Weasley, still up and worried about me."

"She did want to wait for you, but I told her to go to bed, that I would stay up and make sure you came home in one piece. She wasn't feeling very well," he explained.

"She worries too much. We haven't seen you around often, lately."

"I've been busy, working for the Order."

"So I've heard. You look tired; maybe you should get some sleep."

"I always look tired," he laughed, "but you look like you haven't slept in days."

"Almost true," she admitted guiltily. "This tastes so good," she said between mouthfuls, trying to change the subject.

"What are you up to? Is everything all right? You can tell me, you know that."

"I know, and I appreciate it, but there's not much to say, really," she said, as she got up to get some water.

"Are you in trouble?" She couldn't help but laugh at that.

"Probably in more than I realize," she muttered.

"Is there anything I can do to help?"

"Not really, but thank you," she said, sitting back down. A few seconds passed, and he spoke again.

"You're working with a Death Eater, aren't you?" Her head shot up at that, her eyes widened, and that was all the answer he needed.

"Are you sure you can trust him?"

"How did you…"she trailed off.

"The kind of information you brought, the things you asked for… I've worked with spies before; I know what it is like," he answered simply.

"You can't tell anyone, please," she whispered, slightly panicked for a moment.

"I won't." They stayed in silence for a few moments, just eating and thinking.

"How long have you been working together?" She did the math in her mind and was surprised at the result.

"About a month," she said, although it had actually been just three weeks. It felt like so much longer to her.

"And you're sure he wants to help us? You know what happened the last time we trusted one of them."

"Yes, I trust him," she answered truthfully.

"I have known you for almost four years, and you're probably the cleverest witch I've ever met. If you say you can trust him, then I believe you. If there's anything I can do to help, just let me know." A smile lightened her face as she heard those words.

"Thank you," she said. "It means a lot."

"We really should go up to bed," he said, as he finished his tea.

"You are right," she agreed with a small smile, getting up as well. She took a few steps away, but then stopped as she reached the door. She turned around and looked at him.

"Remus," she said, and waited until he was looking back at her. "Thank you," she repeated, and saw a smile form on his lips. She hadn't seen him smile in a very long time.

She fell asleep the moment her body touched the bed, and only awoke to Ginny's voice calling her name.

"Hermione!" Ginny said, shaking her slightly until she finally grunted in response.

"You should get up and come down to the kitchen for some breakfast, before my mum comes to wake you up herself. She probably still wants to make sure you made it back last night alive."

She grunted again, but got up from the bed all the same, knowing Ginny was probably right. She slowly got dressed, and was just tying up her hair when she heard Ginny giggle loudly behind her. Still half asleep, she turned around to face her, and was surprised at her friend's serious expression when she asked, "Is there anything you want to tell me, Hermione?"

She looked at her for a moment, brow furrowed in confusion, and heard Ginny giggle again when she asked what she was talking about.

"You might want to take a look at yourself in the mirror…" she said simply.

Hermione stood up again and stepped into the bathroom, and then she gasped loudly when she saw what Ginny had seen before; a big, dark hickey clearly visible on her neck.

"So who is the lucky man?" Ginny asked, as she entered the bathroom behind her and closed the door. She felt her face grow hot, but refused to answer; instead, she took a moment to reach for her wand and conceal the mark.

"Is this why you've been acting so strange lately?" Ginny asked, looking amused. "It's not Ron, is it?"

"What? No!" she answered, surprised at the question.

"Then who?" Ginny pushed. "Is it someone from school? Who were you meeting last night?"

"I can't tell you," she whispered, holding back a smile.

"Please," Ginny insisted, but after apparently realizing she wouldn't get a straight answer she changed tactics. "At least tell me what he's like," she pleaded.

"What does it matter?" Hermione asked, wanting to change the subject, but Ginny kept insisting.

"Oh, all right," she finally relented. How could she describe him without giving everything away? If Ginny knew she was involved with their former Potions Master… "He's a bit older than me," she started, "and very intelligent, and he's…" she suddenly stopped, after catching the dreamy look on her reflection.

"Is he someone I know? How long have you been together?" Ginny pressed.

"Not very long, just a few weeks," she said, purposefully avoiding the first question. The conversation felt nice, light, a simple girly chat, just like back at school, but she couldn't tell Ginny anything else, and she didn't want to lie any more, either.

"So that's why you've been acting so weird lately. You could've told us, you know? It's not that big a deal."

"Well, it is for me; and you can't tell anyone, promise me," she said, suddenly serious.

"Okay, I won't say anything, but tell me, what…"

"We should head downstairs, I'm really hungry," Hermione interrupted, knowing it was the only way to stop her questions.

"Good morning, dear," Mrs Weasley greeted her cheerfully as soon as they entered the kitchen. Hermione took the toast she was offering, smiling as she sat down.

"Was everything all right last night? Did you have a good time?" the witch asked her.

"Yes, no problem at all," Hermione replied, glaring at Ginny when she heard her muffled giggle. Thankfully, the twins arrived a few minutes later, distracting Molly enough so that she wouldn't ask her more questions.

By the time she finished her breakfast, she was all alone in the kitchen. She got up and left the things she'd used in the sink, where they magically cleaned themselves, before heading out to the library. She stopped by the door when she heard voices inside. Harry and Ron were talking excitedly about something and, for a moment, she considered just turning around and heading to her room, but then she decided she really wanted things to back to normal between them and, with a small sigh, she walked towards them.

"…Tornados, and if the Chudley Cannons win, then they'd play against Wimbourne Wasps next; and if we beat them too, we might have a chance to actually win the League Cup."

"That's not going to happen, and you know it," Hermione said, as she sat down next to her friends. They looked at her, surprised at first, but recovered quickly.

"That's not true! We could win, especially with the new Seeker," Ron replied, trying to sound irritated but smiling at her the next second.

"If you say so…" she said condescendingly, but smiled as well.

"We were just about to play Exploding Snap, want to join us?" Harry asked.

"Sure, why not?"

They stayed there and played for hours, making jokes and laughing. It felt as if she hadn't had such a good time in ages. Shortly before noon, people started arriving for the Order meeting that Kingsley had arranged for that morning. Most of the members stopped by the library for a few moments to talk to them, but others, the newest members, mostly, just walked straight into the kitchen without a word. The last one to arrive was Kingsley, and he stepped into the library as they were talking to Tonks.

"Hermione, I've got something for you," he said, taking an old looking book out of his pocket. "I heard you were interested in the subject, and I thought you might like to read this." She took it from his hand, smiling as she read the title, 'Occlumency, the art of protecting the mind.'

"Thank you, I hadn't read this one yet; it's very hard to find," she said, smiling again, and when both Kingsley and Tonks headed for the kitchen to start the meeting, Hermione excused herself saying she would leave the book in her bedroom and left as well.

She opened the book as soon as she was out of sight, and noticed a small piece of parchment fell from it. She quickly picked it up, sighing in relief as she read it. Kingsley had told her he would help before, but she hadn't been sure until then.

After reading the small note a second time, she took another piece of parchment out of her pocket and copied the information for Snape.

As she walked back downstairs, she found Ron and Harry playing chess, Ginny sitting next to them while she read a Quidditch manual she had just bought. Silently making her way back inside, he sat by them and opened the book Kingsley had given her.

"I thought you were taking that to your bedroom," Harry said, as he waited for Ron to make the next move.

"I changed my mind," she answered, and started reading.

After the first hour went by, she found it impossible to focus on the book anymore. The meeting was taking too long. What if they refused to do what Kingsley asked? What would she and Severus do then?

Suddenly, she felt the parchment inside her pocket grow hot and quickly pulled it out, glancing around to make sure her friends didn't notice.

'We have a problem' was all that was written on it. What did he mean by that? Had Voldemort found out he was a traitor? Were they going to hurt him? Her? Why couldn't he be more specific?

It took another hour and a half before he wrote again to explain; an hour and a half that she spent with her mind going over every possible scenario she could imagine, thinking the worst one moment, just to tell herself he would have been more specific if it was that important the next.

'I won't be leading the attack; it will be Rodolphus Lestrange. They will be waiting for the Order, flying low among the trees in Hyde Park. I expect he will take five Death Eaters with him. He's dangerous, and won't hesitate to kill, but if he gets the prisoners too easily he will know something is wrong. You will have to put up a fight.'

It took her a few seconds to take in everything he had written, but finally she replied.

'I'll talk to Kingsley and make sure everything is set properly.'

'If there's any problem, let me know.'

'I will,' she wrote, and then watched all the lines slowly fade away before rolling the parchment and putting it back in her pocket.

It took yet another half hour for the meeting to end and, as soon as they started walking out of the kitchen, she jumped up.

"I just need to ask Kingsley something about the book," she said, as her friends looked at her questioningly. She quickly stepped into the kitchen, gave Kingsley a meaningful look, and then walked back into the hallway to wait for him.

"Is something wrong?" he asked, as he stood next to her.

"Yes," she said, and then told him what Snape had written about the Death Eaters' plan. "The only problem is, Rodolphus Lestrange will be the one leading them. They will be expecting a fight, and we will have to give them one," she finished hurriedly, trying hard to read his expression. He took a few seconds before answering.

"I will take care of that. I've decided we will take two teams; one with the prisoners and another as backup, just in case. Will you come too?"

"I can't be seen," she said, and saw his eyes narrow for a second.

"You could be part of the other team; they will remain hidden, unless there's trouble," he continued.

"Then I will go."

"The team will meet here at three a.m.; be ready."

"I will," she said, and watched him say goodbye to everyone before leaving the house.

Lunch was noisy as usual, but she enjoyed it this time. She was sitting between Harry and Ron, and they were talking animatedly. She hadn't tied her hair, and every time she pushed it aside or out of her face Ginny would throw her a knowing look that made her blush and forget what she was saying, even though she knew the mark wasn't visible anymore. She had a feeling that was exactly why she did it. Evil.

There was a small backyard behind the house, and they spent the afternoon there. They wanted to play Quidditch and, for the first time, she agreed to play with them. She hated flying, but thought she should better practice before going out that night. 'Wouldn't want to fall and break my neck,' she thought to herself, as she took the broom Harry was offering.

It was already dark by the time they stopped playing and went back inside for dinner. The food was delicious, as always, and even if it was only Harry, Remus, Fleur, the Weasleys and her, the twins made up for the missing ones, so it was as loud as usual.

That night she lay awake in bed, hearing Ginny breathing loudly, but too nervous to sleep herself. It was around one a.m. when she heard the door open and saw Remus peek inside. He smiled when he saw she was awake, and asked if she would like some tea. Glad to have something to do, she quickly got up, changed her clothes and walked into the kitchen after him.

"Kingsley told me you were coming along, and I thought you might have trouble sleeping," he said, handing her a cup of tea.

"And what else did he say?" she asked before taking a sip.

"Nothing you should worry about," he replied. "He didn't mention the plan during the meeting, so only the ones going know about it." She was relieved, and it must have shown on her face, because he smiled at her and said, "I'll be part of the second team, with you and Dora. The ones guarding the Death Eaters know there will be backup, but they don't know who it will be so, if everything goes according to plan, no one needs to know you were there."

"And what exactly is the plan?" He looked confused for a moment, and she realized he had probably assumed she already knew.

"We will meet Dora here around three, and then we will go to Hyde Park. We will have about an hour to get ready before the others arrive. We will just hide and wait, and only show ourselves if necessary."

They spent the next two hours there, talking about almost anything as they waited for Tonks to arrive. She felt comfortable around him; she had always admired him, and found him someone easy to talk to. He was intelligent and patient, always hearing her opinion without judging her, and ready to explain anything she asked, so she was glad he knew what was going on, or at least part of it. Having someone to talk to when she needed felt really good.

Tonks finally arrived, and they performed disillusionment charms on themselves before heading out. It was still dark outside, but as they neared Hyde Park they flew high, trying to see if the Death Eaters were already there. They decided to split, and she watched Remus and Tonks fly away as she landed and hid behind some rocks on a clearing.

After half an hour of crouching her arms and legs hurt badly, and she could only think about stretching, but knew better than to move. A few minutes later she heard the first noises coming from the trees, a few muffled voices, and then silence again. The Death Eaters had arrived.

It took another hour for the other team to arrive with the prisoners. She could see them from where she was hiding, but she couldn't tell exactly who they were. Two figures flew side by side, and it looked like they had some sort of chain linking their feet together. The other four surrounded them, one on either side, one up front and one behind.

The woods remained silent as they approached, but the moment they reached the trees three jets of red light crossed the darkness towards them. She saw one of the figures get hit and fall from the broomstick, and then she heard a whooshing sound on her left. The figured froze just before hitting the ground and then floated away, and she knew Remus, or maybe Tonks, had saved them.

She looked up again and saw almost a dozen people up there. The Order members were now flying in front of the prisoners, the three of them forming a line and facing the other men. She counted six Death Eaters, so she assumed there probably wouldn't be more hiding by the trees. She mounted her broomstick again and moved closer to them.

Three jets of purple light were shot in unison from the Order line, and three Death Eaters fell, but the rest closed in on them, and they had to conjure shields to stop the curses fired their way. She slowly moved even closer, ready to fight if they needed her. The first killing curse was shot then, and the three Order members had to split, avoiding it in the last second. There were now three separate duels, one on one.

A loud scream broke the silence, and then another figure fell. She flew as fast as she could and caught him right before he hit the ground; it was Kingsley. She made sure he was alive, and then disillusioned him and left him near the place she had been hiding. She had to go back.

As two of the remaining Death Eaters fought, the third one flew over to the almost forgotten prisoners and freed them. The Imperius curse the Death Eaters had put them under hadn't been removed, but they couldn't do much without their wands. She heard the masked man talk to them hurriedly, and then they flew away.

"We have them," the masked figure yelled, and then went back to the fight. He managed to stun another one of the Order members, and then the three Death Eaters circled the last remaining figure. She was close enough to see it was Mad Eye Moody. The Auror was using a powerful shield to stop the spells, but couldn't attack them at the same time.

She moved closer, slowly, ready to help him if he needed it.

"Goyle, go find the other ones and send them back with the Portkey; I can take care of this," one of them yelled in a commanding tone, and she guessed it was Lestrange. She saw one masked wizard do as told, and she was tempted to stop him, but then remembered they were supposed to get away; only then the plan would work.

A cold laugh made her turn around again, and she saw Moody get hit by a spell and drop his wand. Both masked men lifted their own wands as one but, before they could say a word, a golden light came from behind them and hit them both square on their backs. It was as if they were moving in slow motion now, and after a second a stunning spell flew past them and hit the Auror. He fell, but was soon caught by another almost-invisible figure.

New jets of light hit the Death Eaters, and they began moving at a regular speed again, the curses finally cast, as if they had never been frozen. They seemed confused for a moment, as the curses flew into the night, and then one of the figures asked, "Why did you stun him? I was going to kill him."

"I didn't stun him," the other one snapped back.

"Go help Goyle, we are leaving," the one in command finally said.

After just a few seconds, the three masked figures disappeared into the night. She lifted the disillusionment charm from herself, and then flew over to where the golden light had come from moments before. As soon as she got there, she saw a figure standing by the trees. She landed again and walked next to him, knowing who it was even from afar.

"I asked you to stay away," Severus said, as she stopped in front of him.

"You saved Moody."

"I did what I had to," he said dismissively.

"Do you think they fell for it?"

"I can't be sure until I go back, but I think they did."

"So what will happen now?"

"They'll plan the next move; I'll let you know as soon as I can."

"All right."

"You're bleeding," he said then, and touched her cheek. She touched it too and winced.

"It must have been a branch."

"You have to be careful," he said softly, and then took a step closer and kissed the cut. She closed her eyes as she felt his lips travel from her cheek to her mouth for a slow, lingering kiss.

"Hermione," she heard Remus' voice call.

"You have to go," she told Severus, as he broke the kiss.

"Hermione," she heard again, and the voice sounded closer this time.

He took a step back, his fingers still on her cheek, and then, with a loud pop, he was gone.

"I'm here," she finally called back, turning around to see Remus walk towards her.

"You had us worried, are you hurt?" he asked, looking at the cut on her face.

"It's nothing," she said with a shrug. "Is everyone all right?"

"We can't find Kingsley," he said nervously.

"He is fine; I left him near the clearing," she said, and heard him sigh in relief.

"Everyone else is safe; they're still out there looking for him. You might want to Apparate back now, or they'll see you."

"That's a good idea," she admitted "I disillusioned him, by the way," she said as an afterthought. "You'll find him behind the rocks." With that said, she finally Apparated away.


	16. the wandmaker

He reluctantly broke the kiss when he heard Lupin call her name again, closer this time. He caressed her face for a moment longer and then Apparated away.

He'd only gone there to make sure everything went according to his plan, just as an observer, but when they cornered Mad-Eye he had little choice but to help. He was lucky she was the only one to see him, or he would have been in real trouble.

As he entered headquarters again, he found the house full of masked men hurriedly walking and whispering to each other. He kept his own mask on and his mouth closed as he walked around, trying to remain unnoticed and hear what the others were saying at the same time.

"I heard they killed Goyle."

"Who told you that? I saw him not five minutes ago."

"I saw him too; he told me they had to take old McNair to one of the Healers in the back room. He said they had hit him with a pretty nasty curse."

He kept walking, catching bits of conversations on his way.

"…those two. They're interrogating them now. They want to make sure the Imperius curses weren't lifted."

"And how did they know where to find them?"

"No idea, apparently they had an informant in the ministry."

He entered yet another room and found about five more Death Eaters sitting and gossiping like schoolgirls.

"They took Rabastan to the infirmary, but they can't get him to wake up. Bellatrix said they had no idea what curse they used on him. Rodolphus was livid."

"They said they killed two of those bloody Aurors on the fight."

"Well, good for them I say."

Silence fell on the room when the Dark Lord himself walked in.

"Severus," he simply said and then motioned for him to follow. He always knew who everyone was, even with the masks.

They walked silently and entered the studio. He watched his Master as he sat down on his usual chair by the fire and then he did the same.

"As you probably know by now, the information you provided proved to be very useful."

"I am glad I could be of help, My Lord," he said, "Do you know where they were being kept?"

"I do. We will make the necessary arrangements to free the ones that remain there, but that is not why I called you," he told him.

"It is not?" he asked, slightly confused.

"No, we won't need information from your witch for this," he continued, "I have a mission for you." He waited patiently for him to speak again.

"As you well know, the wandmaker we brought refused to make new wands for us, and still continues to fight the Imperius Curse. Yesterday we finally managed to make him speak, and he reluctantly told us there is another gifted man that could make the kind of wands we need. You will be in charge of the mission; I want you to bring him here, alive. You will take Amycus and Jugson with you. Do not disappoint me, Severus; you will not have another chance."

"When will we…"

"You will leave tonight, he interrupted. "He is in Australia."

"But the other Death Eaters…?"

"Rodolphus will take care of that as well. The wandmaker is in hiding, but I am sure you will find him. Amycus already knows the details; he will tell you everything you need to know," he finished, and then dismissed him.

Well, the good part of this was he seemed to have gained his Master's trust back, the bad part was he would be gone when they attacked the Order again. He needed to find out the details of their plan without raising suspicion, and fast.

He walked around the rooms, discreetly trying to hear what they were saying and looking for someone he could use, someone who knew about the plans for the attack and whose mind he could easily read. It took him almost an hour, but he finally found what he needed.

He quickly made his way back to the library and unrolled a piece of parchment.

'We need to talk,' he wrote, and waited for an answer.

'Are you there?' he scribbled after a few minutes without response. He waited some more and then decided he would have to find another way to contact her.

He left the building and as soon as he was far enough he focused on the Order's headquarters and Apparated away. He stood in front of the house and disillusioned himself before reaching for the door.

He entered, moving slowly and making sure no one was around. He walked down the corridor, surprised by the heavy silence. Moving closer to one of the windows, he saw a small backyard. Everyone seemed to be there, some flying around and others just sitting and talking, all of them enjoying the warm, sunny afternoon.

It took him a moment to find her, mounted on one of the broomsticks and chasing one of her friends. He needed her to walk inside, but how? It was probably mean, but he pointed his wand in her direction and the next second she was falling to the ground. The others soon landed around her, laughing at her clumsiness. She was laughing too but examining her bleeding knee at the same time.

"Hermione, are you alright, dear?" he heard Molly ask her.

"Yes, it's nothing. I think I'll just go inside and clean it."

"Do you want me to help you?"

"No, stay here, thank you" she told her and began walking back to the house, limping slightly.

He watched as the others went back to what they were doing and as she walked down the hallway towards the stairs, he grabbed her arm and pulled her inside the kitchen.

She gasped in shock at first, but relaxed when he lifted the Disillusionment Charm and she could see who it was.

"What are you doing here?" she asked. He warded the room before answering.

"I needed to talk to you. I tried the parchment but you didn't answer." She buried her hand in her pocket and then frowned.

"I must have left it upstairs," she said.

"I told you to always keep it at hand."

"I know, I'm sorry"

"I will be gone for a few days," he said "I won't be around for the attack."

"When will it happen?"

"Tomorrow night, I'm not sure exactly what time. There will be over twenty men and a few will stay outside to stop anyone from coming out."

"There's hardly any time to prepare."

"That is why I needed to warn you," he continued, "Rodolphus will be leading it again. You will have to tell the others and be ready for them." She took a few moments before speaking again.

"What will happen if we do it?" she asked, and he frowned, confused by the question. A few seconds passed before he realized what she was really asking.

"I will be alright, there's no need to worry."

They locked eyes for a moment and she took a step closer, but winced as she moved the injured leg.

"Let me see that," he said putting his hands on her waist as he sat her on the table.

His touch was soft as he examined her knee, and then he reached for his wand, muttered a few words and the damage was gone.

"Better?" he whispered, his hands still lingering on her leg.

"Yes," she breathed, and then moaned as his hands travelled up her thigh.

"Sorry about the fall."

"You did that?" she asked, but didn't really seem to care.

"I needed to get you back in the house," he muttered as his hands slithered under her skirt.

Soft kisses followed his hands and he felt her lean back against the table, her hands buried in his hair, pulling him closer.

Forgetting all about where they were and the fact that anyone from the Order could walk in any minute; he hooked his fingers around the waist of her knickers and pulled them off, his hands soon making their way back up her thighs.

He kissed her inner thighs and felt her arch against his lips. Seeing how impatient she was, he slipped a finger inside and heard her groan in pleasure. Parting her thighs further, a second finger joined the first one as his mouth found her waiting nub, nibbling and rubbing and making her groan for more. It wasn't long before she was writhing in ecstasy under his touch.

As soon as she came back down from her orgasm, he leaned over her and replaced his fingers with his throbbing erection. Moving faster with every thrust his hands pulled her top up and his tongue traced her breasts, making her nipples harden. She hooked her legs around his waist, pulling him closer, deeper, with her hips meeting his every thrust. Her muscles contracted around him, making him growl as they both went over the edge.

Panting, they took a few moments to calm down before getting up again and straightening their clothes.

"I should go now," he said.

"Me too, or someone will come looking for me." He took a step closer and kissed her softly.

"Tomorrow night, stay away from the attack."

"I can't do that, everyone will have to go."

"It will be dangerous and I won't be there to help, I don't want you to go."

"I'll be careful," she promised. He started speaking again but she moved her hand behind her neck and pulled him closed, silencing him with a kiss.

"What are you doing to me?" he whispered, his eyes closed and his lips still touching hers.

The moment was lost when she heard Ron calling her from the hallway.

"Go back outside and make sure everyone stays there for a few moments as I leave," he said and took a step back, lifting the wards he had placed on the kitchen and watched her leave.

"Ron, I'm here," he hear her say.

"What took you so long, are you alright?"

"Sure, look." A few seconds passed and then she spoke again. "Let's go back outside with the others."

He heard a door slam shut and the voices fade away, and then he stepped out of the kitchen and left the house.

The cold wind hit his face as he let go of the portkey. It was past six a.m. in Australia but the streets were still deserted. The two men by his side looked at him, waiting to hear what he wanted them to do next.

"Give me the papers," he said, and one of them handed him a file where he read the wandmaker's former address.

"We will go here first, and see if anyone there knows where he is."

With a loud pop all three of them Apparated in front of a small house. Heavy wards were set around it but he broke them and stepped inside. They searched the place carefully but found no one there.

"Let's pay a visit to the neighbours," he said and walked to another house.

Breaking their wards just as easily, he searched the place, then walked to one of the bedrooms, and found a sleeping couple. The other Death Eaters wanted to wake them up and torture them until they said where the man was hiding.

"We don't have time for that," he told them, wanting to get back as soon as possible.

He pointed his wand at them and quietly probed their minds in search for the information he needed. It was easier with them asleep.

"They know nothing," he finally said, and then walked back out of the house and entered another one.

They were lucky this time. The old lady living there didn't know where he was, but he found out where the man's sister lived. That would be the next stop.

The sun was up by the time they entered the sister's house. They walked inside and he opened the first room he found. He saw a sleeping child and closed the door again before the others could enter. He moved on to the next bedroom. There was a man there, and he awoke as they stepped inside.

"Sally?" he mumbled, but as he saw the three masked men standing by his door he quickly reached for his wand.

He saw Jugson lift his wand and then the man was screaming in pain, his back arching off the bed.

"Enough," he said, and the curse was lifted.

"Where is your wife?" he asked the panting man, and he just shook his head in response. Another shot of light was sent his way and he was screaming again.

"I said enough," Snape repeated dangerously and the two men took a step back. He walked closer to the bed and saw fear in the man's eyes.

"Where is she?" he asked again, but still he didn't answer.

"Very well" he sighed, and pointed his wand at him. Soon his thoughts were flashing before him, and it wasn't long before he knew the answer to his question. He looked at the watch by the bed and then back at the man.

"She is at work; she will be back in a few hours. We will wait for her here." He saw images of the child now.

"Wait outside, make sure no one else comes in," he told the two Death Eaters and waited for them to leave the room before he spoke again.

"There's no need to worry, your son is asleep and he will not be hurt. We just need to talk to your wife and then we will leave."

He knew the other man probably didn't believe him, but there wasn't much he could do about it. With a flick of his wand, he bound him to the bed and placed a silencing charm on the room before going back outside.

He tried to use legilimency on the woman when she arrived, but she managed to hide her thoughts from him. Not even the Cruciatus made her speak, and he finally had to threaten to kill her son if she didn't cooperate. He hated doing things like that.

She did know where his brother was hiding, but it was no use. There was a Fidelius Charm protecting the place. They would need to find his Secret Keeper.

She reluctantly told them where the Keeper lived and soon they were on their way.

Breaking the wards proved much harder this time, but they finally made it into the house. As they stepped inside, a Stunning Spell hit Amycus and he fell loudly to the floor. Snape fired back and managed to disarm the man and then stun him too.

He searched his mind and found he wasn't the one they were looking for. The Keeper would be back after dinner, and the man had no idea where to find him before that.

They patiently waited for him to return, the others not too happy with just waiting but following his orders all the same.

Finally, almost by midnight, they heard the door open and someone walk inside, this time it was the Keeper.

Unable to read his mind, it took a few hours and many Cruciatus to break him, and Amycus and Jugson were more than happy to do it.

They stood on the sidewalk, between an old building and a tavern and watched a small house suddenly materialize in front of them as they remember the address they had been given. The hard part was over.

They took the wandmaker, alive and unharmed, and used another portkey to go back to London.

It hadn't taken long and he knew his Master would be pleased.

They walked the new prisoner to one of the dungeons and left him there. He made his way to his Master's studio to report back but found him too upset to care about the wandmaker. Most of the Death Eaters he had sent to attack the Order had been captured.

He knew the best thing to do in that kind of situation was to just stay away, so he quickly made his way out of the studio and back to the door when he heard something that froze him on the spot. He needed to find her, and fast.


	17. deliver a message

A hand firmly pressed against her lips awoke her, and she opened her eyes to find a Death Eater leaning over her. She panicked and started fighting, kicking and scratching frantically until the man took off his mask. What was going on? She looked around making sure Ginny was still asleep before turning to him again.

"What are you doing here?" she asked as she tried to control her breathing. The look on his face did nothing to calm her down.

"We have to go. Now," he said and pulled her from the bed. Frowning she reached for her clothes, but he stopped her.

"There is no time," he said, and taking her hand again he pulled her out of the room.

"What's going on?" she asked, starting to feel scared.

"Do you still have that invisibility cloak?" he asked as they moved.

"It's in Harry's room."

"Then forget about it, we have to run."

They flew down the stairs, not even trying to keep quiet and he opened the door and stepped out.

"Apparate by your parent's house. Not inside, just nearby. I will go with you," he said, and held to her arm firmly. Her eyes shot open in surprise, and then fear.

"Now," he yelled, and the next second they were gone.

They Apparated behind some bushes in the house's backyard, and he put on his mask again and told her to stay there. She watched him creep around the house and then go back to her.

"I don't think they're here yet, but we don't have much time," he said and then they both made their way to the backdoor.

Her bare feet were hurting from the small rocks on the floor, but she gritted her teeth and moved on.

They opened the door and stepped inside. She looked around and noticed everything seemed calm and silent, and nothing was out of place.

"Where do they sleep?" he whispered and followed her as she made her way up the stairs.

"I will go first, in case there is someone there already. You just wait here until I call you," he said.

She watched him open the door to the bedroom and glance inside. Her parents were both asleep and he stepped inside, leaving the door slightly open. She heard him muter Silencio twice and then carefully wake them up. Her father opened his eyes first, and panicked at the masked man standing in his room. He tried to speak but no sound left his mouth. Her mother started to get up from the bed but his father stopped her and then tried to attack Snape.

"It's ok, I'm with your daughter," he told them urgently, stepping back and then pointing in her direction. He waited a few seconds for them to calm down and then lifted the silencing charms.

She heard the loud pop of Apparition outside and then the main door open. She walked in and stood next to him.

"They are here," she said.

Her parents took in the dishevelled hair, short nightdress and bare feet and seemed to panic again. She watched Snape walk to the doorframe, glance outside and then slowly close the door behind him.

"Hermione, honey, what's going on?" her mother asked, finally getting up and walking to her side. She started to answer but he interrupted.

"We have to go, now," he ordered as he walked next to her father and held his arm.

"Where to?" she asked. He seemed to think about it for a moment and then sighed and said "Ireland" before Apparating away.

She pointed her wand at the bed and then around the room, trying to make it look like her parents hadn't been sleeping there.

"Hermione?" her mother asked, her eyes fixed on the spot her husband had been just seconds before. She heard muffled voices and steps outside, so instead of answering she just grabbed her mother's hand and Disapparated too.

The entrance was just a few steps away, and they walked there in silence. She used her wand to unlock the door and stepped inside, closely followed by her mother.

"What have you done? Where are they?" she hear her father desperately ask the masked man standing in front of him.

"We're here, dad," she said as she closed the door. Before she knew it her father had his arms wrapped around the two of them, holding both women in a tight embrace for a few moments.

"What's going on?" her mother asked again, and she had no idea just how to answer that.

"Take them upstairs, they will have to spend the night here." She paused for a moment and then decided she wanted to talk to him first.

"Just go up the stairs, I will be there in a moment," she told her parents, her eyes on Snape.

"The first door to the right," he said, not looking at them.

"But…" her father started.

"I'll be there in a minute," she interrupted. "Please."

She sighed in relief when she heard them walk up the stairs and then open a door, but none of them spoke until they heard the door close again, eyes locked on each other.

"What were they doing there?" she finally asked. He took off his mask before answering.

"I'm not entirely sure, not yet, but I think they were trying to deliver a message."

"A message?" she asked, confused.

"The Dark Lord was less than happy with last night's events. You are supposed to be spying for me, for us, but yet you didn't inform they would be waiting for us last night or the night we attacked Grimmauld Place. He wants to let you know you have much to lose if you betray him." He looked at her shocked face for a moment.

"What were they going to do to my parents?" she asked, her voice shaking slightly, knowing the answer but wanting to hear him say it.

"Probably kill them." She opened her mouth to speak, then closed it again and watched him leave the room.

She stood rooted to the spot, waiting for him to return.

"Give this potion to your parents, it'll help them sleep," he said as he handed her a small bottle. They heard the door upstairs open again.

"I have to go, I need to find out what's happened and make sure they won't try to attack you. Stay here with them; you can use the room you stayed in last time."

"I put their bedroom in order before leaving," she said as he walked away, "so they wouldn't know we had been there."

"Good," he told her, "I'll be back as soon as I can," and then he left the house.

She waited until she heard him Apparate away before walking up the stairs to her parents.

"Hermione, honey, what's going on?" she heard her mother ask the second she stepped inside the room.

"You can't go back home, at least for a while."

"What, why? What's happened?"

"Voldemort's followers found out were you live. I will find somewhere safe and you will go there for some time."

"We're not going anywhere without you," her father said, standing up in front of her.

"I can't go, I have to stay here. There is no need to worry about me, I will be alright," she said, trying to smile.

"No, we won't leave you here alone," her father repeated stubbornly.

"Mom, dad," she said, looking at each in turn, "I love you both and you know it, but this is something I have to do, and I can't worry about you at the same time, I need to know you are safe. It will just be temporary."

"But our jobs…" her mother said, and she was glad to notice they were starting to give in. They knew there was no turning back once she had made a decision.

"We will take care of that," she assured them, and then remembered the potion in her hand.

"Drink this," she said, "it will help you sleep." They looked at the small bottle for a moment and then finally drank it.

"Where are you going?" her mother asked, already yawning.

"I will stay here tonight, don't worry. I'll be in the room across the hall. Good night," she said, and then left the room and closed the door behind her.

She felt something graze her shoulder and opened her eyes to find Snape leaning over her, covering her with a blanket.

"I didn't mean to wake you," he said as she opened her eyes. She had fallen asleep on a sofa in the library while waiting for him.

"It's ok," she said as she sat. "I was waiting for you."

"How are your parents?" he asked, sitting across from her.

"Scared, but they will be alright."

"I was right about the attack, but the Dark Lord won't try to hurt them again. Or you."

"Well, that's good news," she said, smiling faintly.

"What happened last night?"

"You don't know?" she asked, surprised.

"Just a few facts. I didn't have time to ask."

"Well, we were waiting for them and attacked as they arrived, but they were more dangerous than the ones from last time."

"Rodolphus probably took the best," he muttered, but then waited for her to continue.

"Three Death Eaters were killed this time, but we got most of them, even Rodolphus Lestrange. We think six or seven managed to escape."

"And from the Order? Was anyone hurt?"

"We had to take one to Saint Mungo's; we still don't know if he'll make it. He is an Auror from the Ministry, and had been with us for just a few weeks. Merlin, I don't even know his name…" she muttered, and stayed in silence for a few moments.

"Anyone else?" he finally asked. She shook her head as she answered.

"No, nothing bad at least. We were lucky."

"You should get some sleep, I have to go make the necessary arrangements for your parents; they will need a place to stay."

"Is there anything I can help you with?" she asked, needing to feel useful.

"You have done enough already, just get some rest," he said, before getting up and leaving again.

She finally decided to walk up to her bedroom, but found it hard to sleep, as usual. So much had happened in so little time.

First, the attack; they had been waiting for it, but hadn't expected them to storm in the way they did. They were very powerful wizards, and what they had thought would be just a small fight had turned into a full-blown battle. It was lucky Kingsley had decided to take most of the Order with him.

Running all over the place, trying to avoid curses as she moved and watching her friends fall, not knowing if they were still alive, she didn't know how anyone could stand it. Adrenaline had kept her moving, her wand pointing and her mouth yelling spells and curses around without stopping to think. They had used Portkeys again, so they could take the ones they captured away fast, while sending the injured away, because they knew some Death Eaters would be waiting outside to attack anyone that tried to leave. When the last men had finally escaped there were just eleven members there, and every one of them had some kind of injury. She hadn't felt pain until then, but once she stopped running she noticed her left arm was bleeding. She paid it no mind as she helped Charlie Weasley to his feet and held him as he swayed slightly. She looked around and saw Tonks and Diggle kneel around Remus, trying to awake him.

She was relieved to hear only one member was seriously hurt and once her broken arm was healed, she went back to headquarters, to make sure her friends were really alright.

Then there were her parents. She had been afraid for them for a long time, knowing they were vulnerable to the Dark Wizards, but to find out they were really trying to kill them… she blinked back tears at the thought. If he hadn't been there, if they hadn't found them in time… she couldn't even think what she would ever do without them.

She opened her eyes when sunlight filled the room. She blinked a few times, her eyes adjusting to the light and trying to remember where she was.

As she got up, she noticed a black robe neatly folded on her bed, a piece of parchment on top of it.

Her parents were still asleep as she entered the room. She gently woke them up and went to the kitchen to get some breakfast. After a few minutes she watched her mother walk in, closely followed by her father. She decided it was time to explain what she had read on the note he had left.

"We have found a place were you can stay for some time," she told them. "No one else will know about it, so you will be safe there."

"And what about you?" her mother asked.

"I won't be able to visit, but I will write as often as I can. There's no need to worry."

"How long will we be there?"

"Not too long hopefully; maybe two or three months, just until things here calm down a bit."

"And how will we get there?" her father asked.

"Come with me," she said, and walked back to her room. He had left a Portkey there, ready to take them to the safe house.

"You just have to touch this," she explained, motioning to the goblet on the desk, "and it will take you there."

They looked confused for a moment, but after all these years, they knew better than to ask. She hugged them both warmly and promised again that she would be fine before they touched the goblet and vanished.

She finally decided it was time to go back to headquarters, so she put on the robe he had left for her over the nightdress, noticing his scent still lingered on it, and took the small roll of blank parchment next to it, reminding herself she had to destroy the other one as soon as she got to her bedroom. She noticed a pair of shoes, also black, by the door. He had shrunk them so that they would fit her. How thoughtful, she thought with a small smile as she made her way out of the house and Apparated away.


	18. the potion

His body felt light, like he was floating, and he was starting to feel dizzy. He blinked once, twice, three times, and then the darkness was gone.

He looked around and noticed he was in his dining room, and sitting at the other side of the table was Hermione.

He could see she was talking animatedly, but her voice sounded far, far away. He noticed the fire in her eyes, her lips moving as she smiled. Slowly, the sound grew louder, and he could finally hear what she was saying.

"…but I was so distracted I added the powdered hellebore before stirring, and the whole thing just blew up and covered me in this grey mud," she said laughing. "It was disgusting."

He felt his lips twitch and a smile form there as he listened to her; he hadn't heard many people talk about potions so cheerfully, so passionately. He was pleasantly surprised at how easy it was to talk to her; the subject didn't really matter, she was an incredibly intelligent witch, who knew a lot and was eager to learn more.

They ate and talked about many things, potions, charms, spells, and curses, and she seemed especially interested in occlumency, but they didn't stop talking when they finished dinner. He felt strangely comfortable around her.

After what must have been hours they fell silent for a moment, just looking at each other, and he couldn't help wonder why she was there, with him. Suddenly she took a deep breath, got up, walked to his side and sat on his lap. She kissed him deeply then, and by the time they parted they were both out of breath.

"I have a surprise for you," she whispered by his ear before standing again, taking his hand and pulling him to her.

"What is it?" he asked intrigued, kissing her again.

"Come," she whispered, smiling, and then walked out of the room.

He followed her into his bedroom but she stopped as she reached the bathroom door.

"Close your eyes," she said and after a few seconds, he did so.

He heard the door open as she took his hand, leading him inside. There was an exotic scent in the air, but he couldn't quite place it. When she finally asked him to open his eyes, again he almost gasped. The floor was covered in white petals and dozens of small silver candles were floating in midair, the only light in the room. He turned around to face her when he heard the door close again, but before he could say a word, she crushed her lips to his, her hands on his hair, pulling him to her.

After a few moments she broke the heated kiss and took a few steps back, a smile on her lips as her hands moved to her sides, slowly lifting her top. Without taking her eyes off him, she unclasped her bra and grinned as she saw him lick his lips, enjoying the show.

She moved one hand to her hair and let it fall freely around her shoulders before unzipping her shirt with the other. Soon the rest of her clothes were lying on the floor too, and she walked back over to where he was standing.

She unbuttoned his robes and let them pool around his feet before kissing him passionately, her fingers now working on his shirt. She moved her lips down as she undid the buttons, kissing the exposed skin before pushing the shirt down his broad shoulders.

She stepped even closer then, and he could feel her hard nipples pressed against his bare chest. Her hands were busy on his belt, then his trousers, and his underwear at last, while her lips teased him everywhere, but as soon as they both stood naked, she stopped.

Giving him a sexy half smile, she stepped into the tub, and then motioned for him to follow. He stood behind her and slowly they both sat down. She leaned back against him, her head resting on his shoulder.

"Do you like it?" she asked, her voice barely a whisper.

"Yes," he said, and with a hand in her hair, he pulled her head back and kissed her passionately.

He let his hands roam freely, touching every bit of skin he could reach while his lips, now on her earlobe, made her start to moan. As his hands moved closer to her core, he felt her spread her legs further apart and lift her hips, trying to get him there faster. He smiled at that and decided to tease her a little, but soon one of her hands was on top of his, making him go where she wanted him. She groaned loudly when he finally relented and slipped one of his fingers inside of her, his thumb rubbing on her clit. Her arm snaked back between them and she carefully wrapped her hand around his hardness, moving it up and down, making his fingers move faster in return.

The feeling of her hand around his length was amazing, but he knew her arm probably hurt, so he gently took her hand in one of his own and made her move it away, pulling her flush against his chest the next second. Her free hands were then buried in his hair, pulling his lips closer to her neck as his fingers moved faster inside of her, and soon he felt her muscles contract around him, her hips bucking as she moaned his name out loud.

He gave her a few moments to calm down, her breathing going back to normal, before he stood up and stepped out of the tub, taking her hand pulling her to him. With his hands on her hips, he kissed her deeply, and then pushed her hard against the tiled wall, grinding his erection against her, both moaning at the feeling. He lifted her up then, and she wrapped her legs around his waist and her arms around his neck as she nibbled on his earlobe. Careful not to fall he opened the door, walked with her into the bedroom and then made his way to the bed.

As soon as they were both lying on the bed she flipped them over and straddled his hips as she pinned both his arms above his head with one of her hands for a few moments. He could've easily stopped her, but he liked the way she was behaving; she hadn't taken control like that before.

He felt her hands on his body, carefully tracing every muscle, every scar. She was moving slow, taking her time, her soft lips on his mouth, on his neck, on his chest. When she started moving down he felt his heart speeding up

He gasped when she wrapped her fingers around his erection for the second time that night, only now he didn't stop her. He groaned as her hand moved up and down, and he could see the smug smile on her face at his reaction. He closed his eyes and pushed his head back as the rhythm increased, and he knew if she kept it up he wouldn't last much longer.

She must have sensed it too, because she stopped stroking at the last possible second and he grunted at the loss, his hips still bucking wildly. She moved back up his body, slowly, giving him time to calm down, and then she straddled him again and in one sudden move, he was inside of her. They both moaned at the sensation and after just a few seconds, she started moving.

Her head was pushed back, her hair wild around her face. Her cheeks were flushed, her mouth slightly open and her eyes closed. She moved up and down his length, trying to find her rhythm, but was moving too slow for his taste.

He started to thrust his hips upwards, forcing himself deeper, but she placed both hands on his hips, keeping him in place as she moved. He let one of his hands travel to her breasts, fondling one and then the other as his free hand moved lower, his thumb teasing her clit. Soon he felt her muscles contracting around him, her breathing hard as she reached her orgasm, but she was moving much too slow for him to feel it too.

He waited patiently until she came back down, but the second she did, he flipped them over again, lifting her legs over his shoulders and burying himself deep inside her. His thrusts were deep and fast, and as he neared his climax, he felt her moan loudly, her body writhing under his. He kissed her deeply as he drove into her hard, muffling her groans as they both came at the same time.

It felt like it lasted forever, but finally they stopped moving. They were both panting and he kissed her again before rolling off her. He lay on his back next to her, both basking in the afterglow, and after a few moments, he snaked his arms around her waist and pulled her to him, her back to his chest, pushing her hair away so he could nuzzle her soft skin. He felt so tired he could barely keep his eyes open.

"I love you," he heard her whisper sleepily, and instead of being surprised he just found himself answering, "I love you too," before finally closing his eyes.

His eyes shot open, fear and surprise mixed on his face as he looked around, feeling dizzy again. He was in his lab, lying on the floor. It took him a few moments to understand what had just happened, but the empty goblet in his hand made it clear.

"So it works," he mumbled, not as pleased as he thought he would be.


	19. erised

She sighed in relief as she opened the door to what seemed to be a sleeping house. It was still early, but she had been afraid she would find someone already up; she didn't feel like explaining where she had been.

She tiptoed through the hallway, trying to get to her bedroom, but as she walked by the kitchen, someone whispered her name. She froze on the spot, her heart beating wildly and her mind working hard, trying to come up with a good excuse in just seconds. Taking a deep breath and forcing a smile she turned around and walked into the kitchen to find a smug looking Charlie Weasley sitting at the table, holding a cup of tea and smiling knowingly at her as she sat down too.

"Caught you," he said.

"You scared me half to death; I thought no one was up yet."

"No such luck. So, what have you been up to, coming home this early? Or late actually…"

"I just woke up about an hour ago, and felt like taking a walk," she said, trying to sound convincing. "I thought you were spending the night at St. Mungo's."

"I was feeling much better, and they let me come back. But don't change the subject, and don't lie to me, I've been up for hours now, and I certainly didn't see you leave," he said, but he was still smiling.

She sat in silence for a few moments, trying to come up with something new, but apparently her brain was as tired as the rest of her body.

"I went to see my parents, I missed them."

"And you did that in the middle of the night?" He narrowed his eyes at that, looking at her intently.

"Well, actually, I thought, I…" she babbled. She couldn't come up with something good enough and she knew it.

"Yes?" he said, waiting for her to talk again. With a sigh she continued.

"Alright, I'll tell you, but you have to promise you won't tell anyone. Anyone."

"I promise," he finally said, after a few moments.

"After what happened last night I was afraid that Voldemort would be upset enough to attack us again. My parents are too vulnerable, and I can't take care of them, I have to be here. I had been thinking about it for some time now, and I decided it was a good time, so I sent them somewhere else, somewhere safe."

"Is there something else to it?" he asked, and she tried her best to keep her expression cool, as she said "No."

"You should have told the Order about it, we would have helped. We have places were they could stay some time."

"I don't want anyone to know. I know it's probably silly, but I just feel better that way"

"Why would you…?" he started asking, but another voice interrupted.

"Hermione? What are you doing up so early?" she heard Mrs. Weasley ask from the hallway.

"I just couldn't sleep," she answered as the woman stepped into the kitchen.

"Oh, Charlie, what are you doing here, are you feeling better?" she asked her son worriedly, completely forgetting about Hermione. She took the chance and got up, she felt she really needed a hot shower and to finally change her clothes, but before leaving the kitchen she looked back at Charlie and their eyes locked for a moment. She moved a finger to her lips, reminding him to keep his promise and then turned around and left.

She wanted to talk to her parents, or at least write to them, but she didn't know where they were, and wasn't sure they would get her letter if she simply addressed it to them; they were in hiding after all.

She rarely stopped to think about the last month. So much had happened it was still confusing. She had done things she never thought she would. She had lied to her friends, hid the truth from them, and deep inside she knew she would do it again if he asked her to. She trusted him more than she probably should, but she couldn't help it.

The order had a meeting that afternoon, and Kingsley approached her when it was over. He wanted to know if the Death Eaters were planning a new attack, but she didn't know yet, she hadn't talked to Snape much that night, and most of it had been about her parents. The Auror was a bit disappointed she didn't have news and asked her to let him know right away if she had any new information. He asked her again who the Death Eater she was working with was, and again she refused to answer.

She had been thinking about him all day, trying to decide if she should contact him or wait for him to take the first step. She was already in bed when she got his message; he wanted her to meet him the next morning. Knowing she would see him again soon, she fell asleep faster than she had in a long time.

He was acting strange, and she noticed the moment she walked through the door. He avoided looking at her as much as he could and stood further away from her than necessary. He seemed uncomfortable to have her around, but she had no idea why.

"Do you have any news from my parents? Where are they?" she asked after a few seconds of silence.

"They are safe, as I said they would be. They are in a house in Budapest."

"And if I want to talk to them?"

"You can't visit them, I told you so in the letter I left. You can write to them. They will receive it as long as it is from you. If anyone else tries to send them something it won't reach them."

"You said Voldemort wouldn't go after them again."

"Yes, but he could change his mind." Silence filled the room for a few more moments before he finally spoke again.

"Sit down," he said, and then turned around and walked to a small table by the door, opened a drawer and pulled a small black bottle out.

"What's that?" she asked as he closed the drawer and walked back to where she was sitting.

"It's the potion I have been working on."

He stretched his arm to hand it to her, and the moment she took it their fingers touched. He looked at her then, something strange in his eyes, and hastily withdrew his hand, taking a step away from her at the same time.

"What's wrong?" she asked, frowning.

"You have to give this to Potter. It can help him find the Horcruxes, if he can control his mind enough," he said, ignoring her question, his face expressionless once again.

"You know about the Horcruxes?" she asked, surprised.

"Of course I know about them, but I don't know where they are."

"But, how will the potion help Harry find them?" He took a deep breath then, considering the best way to explain.

"You know what the Mirror of Erised is?"

"The one Dumbledore used to hide the Philosopher's Stone?" she asked after a moment. He simply nodded.

"It is a mirror that shows you the deepest desire of your heart. But what does that have to do with the potion?"

"Well, this potion works like that mirror. The drinker will fall unconscious and see its deepest desires come true, like in a dream." She thought about it for a moment, remembering what had happened then.

"But when Harry looked at the mirror he only saw his family, why would he see something different now?"

"Because the potion doesn't work exactly like the mirror, if someone concentrated on something hard enough before taking it, they would see their desires, but connected to that subject." She looked at him in silence for a few moments, trying to understand.

"If you think about Quidditch, for instance," he continued, "you would see your favourite team winning the league, or yourself as part of it."

"So if Harry focused on the Horcruxes before taking the potion…"

"He should see himself finding them, or perhaps destroying them," he finished.

"It would take a lot of control to focus before taking the potion, but he is the only one that can find them," he said then, sitting down on a chair across from her.

"Why is that? Shouldn't anyone be able to see them?"

"The potion works with things that are already on our mind, it doesn't really create them. If someone who didn't know where they were tried to see them it simply wouldn't work."

"But Harry doesn't know where the Horcruxes are hidden," she said, confused again.

"But the Dark Lord does, and Potter's mind is connected to his, so there is a chance this information is buried somewhere in his subconscious already. The potion would simply bring it forward."

She looked at the bottle in her hand for a moment, amazed at what he said it could do.

"I never heard of this potion."

"Because it is the first time it has been made. It took months of research to create it, and weeks to brew it, not to mention some extremely rare ingredients, so you had better make sure Potter realizes just how important this is. There is a limited supply."

"Are you sure it works?" she asked, already knowing the answer.

"Of course, I tried it myself."

He seemed even more uncomfortable then, and he got up again and started pacing around the room. She couldn't help but wonder what he had seen.

"That bottle should be enough for two attempts; if it works I will give you more of it. I have to make sure he can concentrate enough before wasting it."

He paced nervously for a few more seconds before stopping by the door.

"I should go now; I have important things to do. And you should go too, before your friends start looking for you."

"Are you alright?" she asked, walking to him as he reached for the doorknob. He looked at her for a moment, considering his answer.

"Yes," he said, and then fell silent again.

"You don't seem alright. Has something happened?"

"Of course not," he answered nervously. She had never seen him act like that. "I have to go now. Please let me know how the potion works as soon as you can," and before she could say anything else he was gone.

Well, that had certainly been strange, but his behaviour hardly surprised her anymore. She put the bottle in her pocket and walked out of the apartment too. There were too many people on the streets, so she decided she shouldn't Apparate there. She walked all the way back to the Leaky Cauldron, thinking about what he had said and trying to understand, but knew it was probably a lost battle.

She finally reached Diagon Alley, and after buying some new quills and parchment, she Apparated at headquarters.

Harry and Ron were outside flying but she wanted to try the potion right away, so instead of waiting for them to come back to the house she walked over to where they were and waved her hand, waiting for them to land before telling them they needed to talk and heading back inside. She needed somewhere quiet, but the twins were in the library, so she finally decided they should go up to her bedroom.

"I have something for you," she said as they sat down. She closed the door and locked it, and then she took the bottle out of her pocket and handed it to Harry.

"What is it?" both boys asked.

"It's a potion"

"I meant what is it for?"

"I think it can help you find the Horcruxes."

"How?"

"Well, you have to concentrate on them before taking it, and then you should see where they are hidden."

"Where did you get this?" She wasn't sure how much she wanted to tell him.

"I found it in an old book back at Grimmauld Place. The potion will show you your deepest desire"

"Like that mirror back in first year?" Ron interrupted.

"Yes, but only if you don't focus on anything in particular before drinking it, but if you concentrate on something, like the Horcruxes, you will see that."

"And you made this?" Harry asked, looking at the bottle in his hand.

"Yes." She couldn't tell them the truth.

"Have you tried it?"

"Yes."

"And what did you…?"

"It works," she interrupted. "You should drink half of it and see what happens."

"You want me to try it now?" Harry asked her surprised.

"Well, yes." She got up then and opened the door. "We will wait outside. Don't forget to focus on the Horcruxes before taking it."

"Oh, alright," Harry said hesitantly.

The moment Ron stepped out of the room she closed the door again and sat on the floor.

"How long does it take?" Ron asked.

"I don't know."

"But you said you had taken it before."

"I have, I just don't know how long it will take for Harry."

They sat in silence first, and then started talking. Her legs already hurt, so she soot up and paced around the hallway. There were no sounds coming from the room. There were voices downstairs and she hoped no one would see them or ask what they were doing, she wanted to be around when Harry came back out.

After what seemed like hours, they finally heard the door open and the boy stepped out. He looked confused and had dried tears on his face. She was about to ask him what he had seen when they heard footsteps behind them. They turned around to see Ginny walking in their direction, and the moment Harry saw her, his face lit up and he ran to her, taking her in his arms and kissing her deeply.

Well, he clearly didn't concentrate enough, she thought to herself, smiling as she dragged Ron down the stairs to give the couple some privacy.


	20. decisions

He left her with her parents and Apparated back to London; he had to talk to the Dark Lord. It seemed the Death Eaters he had sent to her house hadn't returned yet; that would give him more time.

"My Lord," he said, bowing slightly as he entered the studio. "We have the wandmaker."

"Where is he?"

"Downstairs, in the dungeons," he said, still standing by the door.

"Have you heard about the attack?"

"Someone told me we hadn't been able to get the prisoners, but that is all I know."

"So your witch hasn't told you anything?"

"I haven't seen her yet, Master."

"They were waiting for us. I lost many Death Eaters tonight, Severus. You are supposed to be spying for me, you should have told me they would be there, ready for us." He could see the anger in his face and knew he was walking a dangerous line.

"I didn't know, My Lord, but surely Rodolphus should have anticipated it. After the first attack in the morning they were sure to keep a closer look on the others, and even without the second attack they were probably going to move them somewhere else."

"The attack was your idea, Severus. Why didn't you say that before?"

"I was planning on going right after the park; that way they wouldn't have had time to prepare, and I told Rodolphus so but he insisted the attack should be better planned, he said he needed more time."

The Dark Lord narrowed his eyes at that, but before he could say anything else there was a knock on the door, and then it opened to reveal another masked man.

"Travers"

"We just arrived, Master. They weren't there." Anger flashed in his red eyes as he motioned for the Death Eater to leave, his attention back on Severus.

"I sent a few men to pay your witch's family a visit. It seems they weren't home."

"They were moved to a safe place, along with the rest of the immediate families of all Muggle-born witches and wizards from the Order months ago." He felt him probe his mind then and stopped him.

"Why did you want to find them, Master?"

"I wanted to let the girl know what happens if she fails to do as I ask. I wouldn't want her to forget she is working for me now, and I am sure you feel the same way."

"She has told me everything she knows so far, Master. If her parents were hurt she would just back off, we would lose our only informant. If I can keep her fooled and working with me I believe I can make my way back into the Order, and then we wouldn't need her anymore."

Knowing the logical approach didn't always work with him he waited for an answer, doing his best to look calm and indifferent.

Once he was sure the Dark Lord wouldn't go after Hermione or her family, at least for the time being, he went back to talk to her. He needed to know what had happened during the attack the previous evening. Then he set to the next task, finding her parents a safe place to stay.

He couldn't send them somewhere he owned, or he would risk exposure if the Dark Lord ever found them. He decided he would get them out of the country, and remembered he knew a wizard in Hungary, much like Mundungus Fletcher, who could help him. Pointing his wand at a nearby rock he mumbled 'Portus' and then touched it, finding himself in Budapest the next second.

He walked the almost empty streets, too early for people to get up to work and too late for most who stayed up all night. He knew where a man like him could be found, so he searched for an open wizard's pub. It wasn't long before he found what he needed. He had gone home already, but the barman knew him and told him where he lived.

The man wasn't pleased with the banging on the door waking him up, but his mood changed as soon as he realized Severus was there for business. He told him he knew of a place in the city he could use and agreed to take him right away.

The house wasn't too big, but it looked safe enough, so after paying for it he turned to the wizard and stunned him. Men like that couldn't be trusted and he knew it well, so the only thing he could do was obliviate him and take him back to where he lived.

After going back and placing strong wards around the house, he left a letter to her parents, telling them to stay inside the house and wait. He would visit them in a few days.

Stepping back out he Apparated to his own place. He needed to talk to Hermione. He found the library empty, so he walked up to the bedroom.

He stood at the door and watched her sleep for a few minutes before he remembered why he was there. Not wanting to wake her up again, he decided to leave her a note, explaining where her parents would be and leaving a Portkey to the new house.

He had already reached the doorway before he remembered he had dragged her out of headquarters that night, not giving her time to get dressed. He walked back to his room and found a robe and some shoes, and after shrinking them he left them by her bed and left.

Back at Spinners' End, he noticed the smell of the potion from the entrance. He had forgotten all about it. He walked to the lab and stood by the cauldron. The colour had turned a dark shade of blue, and that meant it was almost done. Reaching for a glass jar inside one of the small cupboards on the wall he took some of the silver powder in it and added it to the potion. He stirred it clockwise three times and then took the cauldron out of the fire. A few more hours and it would be ready.

It was almost dawn by the time he crawled into bed. It had been a very, very long day.

Not finding much rest in the few hours he managed to sleep he finally got up, surprised to see it was already midday.

The potion was ready and he knew he had to try it himself, make sure it worked properly before giving it to her.

He walked to his lab again, closing the door behind him and taking a goblet from one of the tables. The swirling liquid was black now, and after leaving next to him a few antidotes he might need if something went wrong, he poured some of the potion into the goblet and drank it. He felt the room start to spin the moment the warm liquid touched his lips and he closed his eyes, trying to focus. The next thing he knew he was laying on his back, the goblet empty by his hand.

His head hurt and he still felt dizzy and confused, but after a few seconds, images of what he had seen flooded his mind. He wasn't sure what had happened. The truth was he had expected to see something entirely different. He thought he would see the Dark Lord defeated, that he would find himself free for once in his life, not having to do what others told him to, finally able to make his own decisions. The rational part of his mind, the one in charge, told him that was what he desired the most, so when he woke up his first thought was that the experiment hadn't worked properly. It took him a few more seconds to realize the potion had reached a part of himself he had kept locked for so long he had forgotten its existence. He wanted her. He wanted her to love him, for some reason he couldn't begin to understand.

Instead of getting up, he spent the rest of the afternoon there, unable to move, lost in thought. Simple denial had worked wonders so far, but it wouldn't do anymore. Usually, in a situation like this, he rarely let anything get so far out of hand; he would take the fastest road and simply stay away from her. He couldn't do that, they had to work together. Well, if he couldn't stay away he would at least have to keep his hands to himself.

Not wanting to think about that anymore he decided to try the potion again, this time focusing on the war. Now knowing how fast it worked, he took the refilled goblet with him, walked up to his bedroom and lay on the bed.

He had always had a strong mind, and had learned to control his thoughts long ago, so it wasn't hard to concentrate before taking the potion this time.

It worked just as he had expected, but left him incredibly tired. Gathering all his remaining strength, he reached for the piece of parchment inside his pocket and scribbled a note, asking her to meet him the next morning in the apartment near Kings Cross. As soon as he read her response, he put it away and fell asleep.

For the first time in years, he had good dreams, remembering what he had seen, the war over, the Dark Lord finally out of his life, and he awoke in a good mood. Until he remembered the other things the potion made him see.

He arrived at the apartment early and waited for her, reminding himself to behave as he paced around the room.

When he finally heard the soft knock on the door, he took a deep breath and let her in.

The way she smiled at him when he opened the door almost made him forget his resolution and push her against the wall right there and then, but he still had enough self-control to look away and act indifferent.

He made sure he stayed as far away from her as he could without her noticing any change in his behaviour, but every time she looked at him or talked, he would remember what he had seen the previous day and feel his body struggling to take control and reach for her.

Then she stood up and walked to him, a concerned look on her face, asking him what was wrong, and he knew he would do something stupid if he didn't just leave.

As he made his way back to his place he couldn't help but wonder if the potion would work as he needed it to. He knew Potter would find it hard to focus enough for it to work, but Dumbledore had had faith in the boy, the same kind of faith he had shown him when he had made the hard and dangerous decision to turn to the light, when no one else believed in him. Maybe he would show a little patience.

´Have you tried the potion yet?' he wrote, hours later. It took a few minutes for the answer to form.

'Yes.'

'Did it work?' he asked, already knowing the answer.

'Well, it worked but…'

'What did he see?'

'He didn't see the Horcruxes,' she finally wrote.

'I believe I told you there is a limited supply. I explained he had to concentrate on in before taking the potion.'

'It is not easy, and it was just the first attempt.'

'How does everyone expect him to save the entire wizarding world when he can't manage to do something as simple as controlling his own mind, focusing on something for a few minutes, is beyond my understanding'

'That's not fair, it is not that easy. He just…'

'Life is not fair, and neither am I,' he interrupted before he could finish what he was writing.

His words vanished from the parchment and it stayed blank for a few moments.

'Have him take the rest of the potion,' he wrote, 'and let me know as soon as it is done. I want to know what he sees. I will not waste the potion and my work on someone who can't handle it.'

'I will go see him now,' she wrote, and then he rolled the parchment and put it away.

He felt the mark in his arm burn. His Master was calling.

"What do you know about the men the Order captured?" his Lord asked as soon as he stepped into the studio. He could feel his anger in the air, not a good sign at all.

"Nothing yet, Master. I will meet the witch tonight."

Without so much as a word, he saw the red eyes narrow, a bony hand wrap around a wand and point at him and then pain. Searing pain.

"You should know it by now," he said as he lifted the curse. "Are you not a spy?"

"Yes, Master, I am sorry," he answered, panting as he tried to get up.

"You have failed me many times, Severus. My patience is running out."

He waited a few seconds, towering over him, as if trying to decide what to do next. Then the wand was aimed his way again. 'Crucio' He saw his lips form the word, but didn't hear the sounds.

The pain was back, and he fell to the ground again. He felt like his entire body was on fire, his back arching off the ground, his head hitting the hard floor again and again. His throat was raw from screaming, but the torture didn't stop. The feeling of needles buried deep in his flesh came then, even worse than the burning, his body twisting so badly he felt bone break. Then it stopped again.

The sound of his screams still echoed in the room and in his ears, his arms and legs still shaking, his breathing ragged and his vision blurred.

"You will find out where they are keeping the prisoners now, and where the Muggles are hiding. I do not care what you have to do, but I want to know it. If you disappoint me again, you and your witch will be the first to go. You will not be able to protect her anymore. Is that understood?" he asked cruelly, towering over the panting man again.

"Yes, Master," he managed to answer.

"Good, now get out of here," he said as he walked to the door and left the room.

Gritting his teeth he slowly got up, one arm wound around his ribcage as he used the other to support his weight. He couldn't stay and heal himself, he knew better than that. Leaning on the wall, he made his way out of the room.

He had known his Master would be upset about what had happened and with Rodolphus gone, he would find a way to blame him for everything, but that hadn't been as bad as he had expected. Soon he would be alright again.

He was surprised the Dark had mentioned Hermione, though. He was sure he hadn't seen anything about her in his mind, not even when he was torturing him, so he must have noticed the way he tried to protect her, and that wasn't good. He would have to be much more careful.

Slowly, he made his way to the door, glad he hadn't ran into anyone on the way. Knowing it would hurt he took a deep breath and Apparated to his house.

It took him almost an hour to find all the potions and salves he would need before he finally walked to his bed and lay down. His arms and legs, along with his back, were covered in bruises, and he had broken two ribs and his left wrist.

The potions soon took away most of the pain and the salves would heal the bruises in a few hours, but the bones would take longer. He didn't have the necessary potions or the ingredients to brew them, and he couldn't just go to a healer and ask for help. Rest was the only thing that would help, so he took some sleeping draught and closed his eyes, letting the darkness take over.

He woke to the sound of scratching, and he had to cover his eyes to shield from the sunlight coming through the window. He had slept too long. He tried to move and found he felt much better, even if his ribs still hurt. He tried to get up then, but felt incredibly tired, his arms and legs as heavy as his eyelids.

He closed his eyes again, just for a moment, he told himself, and then the same sound woke him up again. His mind was clear now, and soon he realized what the scratching was. Slowly, he reached for his robes, took the parchment from his pocket and read it.

'Are you there?' it said.

Finally getting up and walking to his desk, he found a quill and answered a simple 'Yes'.

As soon as he finished writing it a new line appeared.

'Thank God, I was so worried!"

'Worried?' he asked, trying to imagine what could have happened in his absence.

'I have been trying to reach you since dawn, and you didn't answer. I wrote every fifteen minutes but nothing. I was so scared.'

She was scared for him, he thought surprised.

'You have no need to be worried about me, Miss Granger. I can very well look after myself.'

'That's not what I meant,' she quickly wrote back.

'What happened with the potion?' he asked then, trying to change the subject.

'I think it started to work.'

'Started?'

'Well, Harry said the images he saw were blurred, but he recognized the place he found himself in. He has been there before, but in the vision it looked different.'

'What did he see?'

'The place where one of the Horcruxes was hidden.'

'And he has been there before?'

'Yes, but the Horcrux isn't there anymore.'

He thought about it for a moment, trying to decide what to do next. He couldn't be sure the boy hadn't just recalled a memory of the place.

'Meet me tonight at the Leaky Cauldron, I will give you another bottle,' he wrote, deciding to give the boy another chance.

'What time?'

'Nine,' he answered. 'Make sure no one follows you.'

'I will.'

Then he tapped the parchment with his wand and it burst into flames, both his parchment and hers consumed by the fire in a few seconds.

He turned around and looked at the clock on the wall. It was already past eleven. Moving carefully he made his way to the bathroom and started the shower. The smell of the salves on his skin was already unbearable.

The hot water helped relax his muscles, but the shower brought back memories of both of them, under the water, not so long ago, her writhing deliciously under his touch, kissing him heatedly. He groaned and hit the wall in frustration, remembering too late that his wrist still hurt.

Cursing loudly at the pain he stepped out of the shower. It had to stop; he couldn't live like that anymore. It wasn't good for him and definitely less than she deserved. That thought surprised him; he couldn't remember when he had started to care.

He pushed her out of his mind as he dressed, thoughts of what his Lord had told him the previous day taking its place as he walked down to the kitchen. He had asked for the prisoners and the Muggle families, and he knew he had to give him something. He was unpredictable and especially cruel when enraged.

He spent the afternoon contemplating all possibilities. It was a hard decision. He had found himself in situations like this before, but that didn't make it any easier.

Before he knew it, it was time to leave. He took one of the little bottles from his lab and put it in his pocket as he left the house and Apparated by the Leaky Cauldron.


	21. Gryffindor courage

She stepped into the Leaky Cauldron and looked around, trying to see if he was there already. Of course he was.

She wondered why he had asked her to meet in such a public place, and at night. Sneaking away from headquarters was getting more and more difficult. It felt like they were all watching her every move for some reason. This time Ginny had said out loud she was sorry she couldn't meet 'their' friends that night, that she was just really tired, and after a fake yawn and a big, meaningful wink she had walked up to their bedroom, and thanks to that they had finally stopped the interrogation and let her leave.

As she walked to where he was sitting, she felt her heart beat faster. She had never before met anyone that could make her body instantly react that way.

"Tell me what the boy saw," he said as soon as she sat down.

"Good evening to you, too," she said cheekily as she looked at him.

"This is a business meeting, Miss Granger. I believe we can spare the niceties."

She was just about to retort when a waiter walked to their table. A few minutes later, with the drinks on the table and the man out of earshot he asked the question again.

"I already told you that. He saw the place where one of the Horcruxes had been hidden," she whispered, looking around warily.

"But you said he had been there before."

"Yes," she said simply.

"So how do you know it wasn't just a memory?"

"He had seen the place twice before, but he said in the vision it looked different."

"Different how?"

"I don't know," she sighed. "He just said it wasn't the same."

"And he knows for sure the Dark…"

"Are you sure this is the right place to talk about this?" she interrupted, noticing many people around hiding their faces like the two of them.

He seemed to think about it for a moment before finally sighing and getting up. He left a few coins next to the untouched drinks and walked with her to the exit. Looking around to make sure they were alone he grabbed her arm and Apparated them away.

The second she felt the floor under her feet again, he let go of her arm and took a step back, looking at her with that same strange look she had seen on his face the previous day.

"Where are we?" she asked, the first thing that crossed her mind, to break the uncomfortable silence.

"It's just another safe house," he said, and then sat on a sofa, motioning her to sit on the one in front of him.

"So?"

"So what?" she asked confused after a moment.

"Is Potter sure the Dark Lord used the place to hide a Horcrux?" he asked irritably.

"Yes, but it isn't there anymore."

"Has it been destroyed?"

"I don't know," she answered truthfully. Even if she trusted him and he already knew about the Horcruxes, she didn't feel comfortable discussing the locket and what Harry had told her about the night he and Dumbledore had gone to the cave, the night the wizard had died. He must have sensed her discomfort, because he didn't push the subject.

"Did he see anything else?"

"No, he said the vision lasted just a few minutes. He only saw the place."

He looked away for a moment, apparently lost in thought, and then looked back at her.

"And he saw this the second time he took the potion?"

"Yes"

"What did he see the first time?"

"I don't know," she said, and felt herself blush lightly. She hadn't asked Harry what he had seen, but by the way he had acted right after she had a good idea what the vision had been about.

"So the first time he takes it he sees nothing related to the subject, and the second time he just sees something useless, something that might very well had been a memory."

"He can do it, his concentration has improved."

She felt his eyes lock with hers, felt him pressing, as if he was trying to see through them, and she looked away.

"You truly believe in him," he said after a few seconds.

"I do."

"Fine, then you will be responsible for what happens. This is the last bottle he will get unless he sees something useful. I trust you will make sure he does."

He stood up and took a small bottle from his pocket. She got up too and stretched her arm to take it, but he stopped mid motion, looked at her hand and then lowered his arm and left the bottle on the table between them and turned to a small window.

She was getting tired of this. It was the second time she had seen him act like that, like he was scared or avoiding her, reminding her more and more of the mean potions master she had once known. Now things were different. They had gone through a lot together, even if it had been just a few weeks, and the thought of him going back to that, of not being close to him again, was a painful one.

"Is everything alright?" she asked again, and she received the same curt answer.

"Yes."

"Have I done anyth…?"

"I already told you, Miss Granger, that everything is fine," he interrupted irritably. "Now take the potion to your friend and make sure it works. You can Apparate from outside the building," he finished, without turning to look at her.

"So you are going to be like that?" she asked, her anger rising fast.

"Be like what?"

"Just…all business?" she said, unable to find a better word.

"This, you and me," he said, finally turning to look at her, his face expressionless, "It is just business."

"So that is what it is?"

"That is what it always has been," he said, and then turned to the window once more.

She could think of nothing else to say, the cold look on his eyes making her feet take her to the door without her thinking.

As her hand reached the doorknob, as she was about to leave the place, she stopped. She could remember the way he had looked at her in the last few weeks, the way he had kissed her, the things he had said when he was lost in passion, and knew she didn't want it to end. She wanted to feel that again, to feel her blood rush and her breath catch, to feel his body next to hers, to know maybe he cared about her, to believe everything that had happened between them had been real. She realized this as she decided she wouldn't let him make the choice for her, she wouldn't let him end something that had only just started without apparent reason, without any explanation.

Gathering all of her Gryffindor courage she let go of the knob and turned around, silently making her way back to the room he was in. She found him standing in the middle of the room, his back to her, his hands buried in his hair, his head lowered, and she wasn't sure what to think of it.

She took another step forward and he finally noticed he wasn't alone. He looked at her confused, and then at the table, thinking maybe, she had just forgotten the potion, but the bottle wasn't there.

She started walking again, and as she slowly moved closer, he stepped back. He had to stop when the back of his knees hit the sofa, and as soon as she reached him she moved both hands to his chest and pushed him back, watching him fall on it.

"What are you doing?" he asked, his voice dangerous, but he didn't scare her.

"I just remembered," she said, as she slowly moved to straddle his thighs, "that I haven't thanked you for helping my parents. Not properly at least," she said playfully as she leaned closer to him.

She felt him tense, and for a moment, she wondered if she was making the right choice. She felt silly, trying to seduce this man, but then she looked into his eyes and saw the same hidden desire she had seen before, and it gave her the confidence she needed.

She leaned forward and licked the side of his neck, nibbling his earlobe as she reached it.

"They mean the world to me," she said, in what she hoped was a sexy voice "so I guess you deserve a big reward." She grinded her hips against him at the last word and saw him grit his teeth as he tried to control himself.

"Don't, you have to stop," he said, his voice hoarse.

"Don't worry, it's just business," she whispered then, repeating the words he had used moments earlier.

Her lips were back on his neck, kissing and nibbling, as her hand moved between them, stroking his now obvious erection through the cloths. She smiled as she heard him curse, his head falling back, his eyes closed. She had never acted like this before, he had usually been the one to make the first move, but this made her feel daring and sexy.

"Stop," he muttered again, and she noticed his fingers almost buried into the sofa. It was as if he didn't want to touch her, as if he didn't trust himself to even push her away.

"Why?" she asked against his lips, their mouths so close she could feel his breath on her lips.

"I can't do this," he mumbled, his eyes still closed.

"Sure you can," she breathed as she grinded against him again and crashed her lips on his.

He groaned in defeat as her tongue traced his lips and soon he was responding to the kiss with incredible passion. She felt his hands on her waist and she slapped them away. She started unbuttoning his shirt then, running her hands through his chest as she pushed the shirt past his shoulders. She kissed his neck and then his collarbone, and noticed his hands back on her body.

She slapped them again, but this time she stopped kissing and looked at him, his swollen lips, and his ruffled hair. She bit her lower lip, moving her hips again, and when he grabbed her, trying to stop her, she threw him a warning look before leaning against him, her hands around his wrists, moving his arms to his side, her lips by her ear "Don't make me bind them"

That seemed to do the trick, and with another groan, he stopped trying to take control. She wanted to tease him, but as the minutes passed, she realized she was teasing herself just as much. She wanted him, and couldn't wait much longer.

With a wicked smile, she reached between them, opened his trousers and freed his erection. He sighed in relief and then moaned as she wrapped her fingers around it and began to stroke.

Her eyes fixed on his face, taking in every change in his expression, watching him finally surrender to the pleasure she was giving him. As much as she enjoyed the new feeling of control, her body ached for him, so she rolled up her dress, moved her knickers to the side and before he knew what was happening he was buried deep inside her.

They both moaned loudly, at the same time, and she stilled a few moments to let her body adjust.

Then it started. It didn't take her long to find the right rhythm, moving up and down his length fast, enjoying the guttural sounds that came from him. The thrusts were long and deep and she hooked one arm around his neck before leaning back, her other arm on his knee, preventing her from falling as she changed the angle. She could feel his body tense as she rode him, his hips jerking up to meet her every move, and when his hands moved again, one to her hips and the other to her clit, she didn't complain.

Soon she felt the tension inside her body build and then shatter, her head falling back as she found her release. A hand in her hair pulled her back to him and their lips met again in a breathtaking kiss as he came.

He kept moving for a few moments before finally stopping, both panting but looking sated. A few moments passed before he gently lifted her and moved her next to him. He buttoned his trousers then and got up, reaching for his cloak and then handing her a piece of parchment.

"I had forgotten to give you this," he said.

Half annoyed and half amused at him remembering the parchment at that moment she got up too and took it. He always looked uneasy after they were done, changing the subject or finding an excuse to leave as soon as possible. As she walked to him, her eyes fell on his still open shirt, noticing the bruise on his ribcage.

"What's happened to you?" she asked, her fingers tracing the darkened skin.

"It's nothing," he said as he stepped away and closed the shirt.

"Did he do it?" She didn't need to say the name; they both knew what she was talking about.

"It doesn't matter."

"Was it because of my parents, because of me?" she asked, afraid of the answer.

"There were many reasons. It's just part of my life."

They had had that conversation before, and she decided she wouldn't push. She was too happy to see the awkwardness was gone to say something that could bring it back, so they just stayed in silence for a few moments.

"I will need a list of the Death Eaters imprisoned," he said when he was finished buttoning his shirt. "Can you get it?"

"Yes."

"You have to keep the parchment with you every moment. If I contact you I will need your answer fast."

"What are you planning?"

"I'm not sure yet, but I have to do something. The Dark Lord isn't pleased with my work." She wanted to say many things, but knew it would be pointless, so she just nodded.

"Give the potion to Potter as soon as you see him. Make sure it works this time."

"I will."

"I have to go now," he said as he grabbed his robes. "We will talk soon."

They walked out the door in silence, and as they stepped out of the building, he looked at her and muttered, "Be careful."

She barely had time to whisper "You too," before he was gone.


	22. there's no time

He wasn't proud of what had happened, he knew he should have been stronger than that, but there was no point regretting it now, he had more important and pressing matters on his mind.

He went back to his place to think, he still hadn't decided what he would do about the Dark Lord, but he knew it would have to be something important, something big enough he would forget everything that had happened lately. He had to get him to trust him completely once more, so he would be free to work against him once more.

His Master had asked for the Muggle families, but he couldn't give him that, even if he had wanted to. He still planned to join the Order again, and it would never happen if their families were killed because of him.

He couldn't give him the other thing he had asked for either. Most of the Death Eaters that had been captured during the two attacks he had planned were dangerous; some of them close to the Dark Lord and all of them responsible for many deaths. There was no way the Order would let them go, and he couldn't just find their whereabouts and have other Death Eaters set them free. It would make it just as hard to become part of the Order again as the other option.

With that in his mind he went to bed, knowing there wasn't much he could do without the information he had asked from her. He woke at dawn and checked the parchment, and he checked it again and again, until finally, around noon, he found her writing on it.

He already knew half the names on her list, but he hadn't been sure exactly who Rodolphus had taken with him, and he couldn't very well walk into headquarters and ask around.

He read and copied the list, crossing off some names and circling others, trying to find the right person to make his plan work. He needed someone close to the Dark Lord so that they would know important information, but someone self-centred enough to sell them all to spare themselves. At least that's what his Master had to believe.

'I need you to contact Kingsley Shacklebolt again,' he wrote, and it took a few moments for her to answer.

'He will come this evening, I think.'

'No, it can't wait that long.'

'I could go to the Ministry, see if he is there,' she offered.

'Someone could see you there, it could be a problem.' The parchment remained blank for a few seconds and then she wrote again.

'I could ask someone from the Order to contact him for me.'

'Who?' he asked, after a moment's thought.

'Remus?'

'Lupin? Can you trust him to help?'

'Of course,' she quickly replied. After the last few weeks, he knew he could trust her judgement, at least most of the time, so he finally agreed.

'Alright then, have him arrange a meeting. Tell him it's urgent and it has to be somewhere private.'

'And what do I tell Kingsley?'

'Go talk to Lupin first, I will tell you about the plan after that.'

He waited for her to write again, almost still, his eyes glued to the parchment as his mind tried to decide the best way to act and how to explain the plan to her. After almost fifteen minutes a new line appeared.

'He has already left for the Ministry to find Kingsley. He will let me know what he tells him as soon as possible.'

'Good, now pay attention. I need to have Mulciber taken to a safe house, somewhere in London, and he has to be left alone. He cannot do wandless magic, so if you just take his wand and ward the flat he won't be able to leave. They mustn't leave anyone guarding him.'

'Why do you want him alone like that?'

'Because I will probably need to get to him.'

'You are going to set him free?'

'No,' he wrote and after a few seconds, he continued. 'Once that is done I will contact you again with important information. The Order and the Aurors from the Ministry have to be ready and waiting.'

'How will I get them to do that?'

'You will tell Kingsley you can take them to the Dark Lord's headquarters.'

'Where?'

'I can't tell you, not yet. I can't risk them finding out too soon.'

'I would never tell them,' she quickly replied, and he knew it was true.

'They can find out by other means, you are not such a skilled occlumens.' He waited a few moments to see if she would write something else and then continued.

'They have to be careful, and it's important to take as many people as possible.'

'But will we be able to get inside?'

'The place is not as protected as one would expect. Powerful wizards could detect that kind of concealment, using such strong magic. But if it is poorly protected no one will be interested in finding out what is inside it even if they accidentally found the building; they would just assume it wasn't even worth the trouble. The wards around it can be easily lifted by a trained wizard.'

'I'm not sure they will lis…' and then the writing stopped.

'Remus is back,' she wrote after a few minutes.

'Will Kingsley meet you?'

'Yes, in half an hour.'

'Good. Let me know as soon as you are done,' and then he folded the parchment and put it away.

Well, he had finally made a decision. Many things could go wrong, but he believed it would work as long as he waited until the last possible minute to act.

Over two hours had gone by before she wrote again. He had used that time to go through the details of his plan. He still had to explain to her what they had to do, or at least a part of it.

'He has agreed to do it,' she wrote, and he couldn't help but sigh in relief.

'The Ministry, too?'

'Yes.'

'And they will move Mulciber?'

'Well, it wasn't easy, but finally he agreed to that, too.'

'I need to know where he will be.'

'I thought you might. He will tell me once we are all together and ready to leave.'

'And when will that be?'

'Tonight at ten.'

'Good. I need you to contact me then and I will tell you where to go, but you can't use the parchment anywhere near them, they can't know how we communicate. Just tell Kingsley you have to talk to your informant and Apparate away. Once we are done I will destroy both parchments, you can go back to them and tell them the location.'

'How many Death Eaters will we find there?'

'Don't worry about that; just make sure they are ready. I will take care of the rest.'

'Oh, and just one more thing,' she wrote just before he put the parchment away. 'Kinsley asked me to tell you something.'

'What is it?'

'He said this is it, this will be the last thing he does on faith. No matter how much your information helped so far or that I trust you, he will not help again until he knows who you are.'

Well, he had been expecting something like that for some time now, he was just glad the Auror had agreed to do this last thing before getting the answers he wanted.

'We will see to that later, for now just focus on this. I will be waiting at ten, don't be late.'

'I won't,' she wrote back, and then he rolled the parchment and put it back in his pocket.

There were still a few hours before then and he spent them deciding exactly what he would tell his Master. There could be no mistakes.

'We are ready,' she finally wrote just a few minutes after ten.

'You have the address?' he asked.

'36 Carter Lane. Here in London like you asked.'

'Is he alone?'

'Yes.'

He then wrote the address to the Dark Lord's headquarters and asked her to memorize it.

'I will be there tonight. If there is anything else, I need to tell you I will find a way to let you know. Wait right where you are ten minutes and go back to them, then Apparate there. How many of you will it be?'

'I didn't count them, but I'd say about eighty people in all.'

'Good, that should be more than enough. Be careful.'

'You, too.' As soon as the last word was finished, he flicked his wand and the parchment burst into flames.

Now it had started there was no turning back. He took the cloak and mask he had left on the table and walked out of the house.

He Apparated almost half a mile away from headquarters, and as soon as his feet hit the ground, he started running. He needed to sound convincing.

He slammed the front door open and ran through the narrow hallway, bumping into surprised Death Eaters on the way until he finally reached his Master's studio. He knocked on the door, much harder than usual, and then opened it without waiting for a response.

"I'm sorry, my Lord," he panted, bowing slightly and taking off his mask.

"What is it, Severus?" he heard him ask, and noticed the annoyance and slight anger in his voice at the interruption.

"Mulciber has talked." Well, he did have his Master's attention now.

"How do you know?"

"The witch told me. They've moved him to a flat in London."

"Do you know what he said?"

"He told them where to find us, gave them this address." The room fell silent as his Master frowned, taking in the new information.

"I'm sorry, my Lord, but there is no time."

"What do you mean?" he asked, anger flashing in his red eyes.

"They are already on their way."

"How many?" he asked as he stood up.

"At least a hundred."

"How long until they get here?"

"The witch contacted me as soon as she found out, but they were already about to leave. We probably have less than five minutes left."

He watched the Dark Lord raise his head and look around, but his eyes were unfocused.

"There are less than twenty Death Eaters here," he said as he looked back at him.

"But if you called the others they would come to you in a moment, Master. We could fight them."

"I have already lost too many men. We can't stop this attack without time to prepare."

"But, my Lord, with the others here we could at least keep them out. We could hold them up long enough to plan something, maybe we could force them to retreat if we work together."

"You are brave, Severus, but it would be foolish to fight now. Let them come, let them think we are weakened, and then we will strike back when they least expect it. We will prove just how strong we are."

"You are right, Master," he said, bowing.

"Tell the others to leave right away."

"Yes, my Lord," he said and they both walked to the door.

"Master, the prisoners," he said, sounding alarmed.

"Take a few men and go down to the dungeons. You can use the other entrance to leave."

They both set for the main room when they heard a loud bang, doors and windows suddenly flying off their frames.

He looked outside and could see robed men and women pointing their wands at them as they walked closer. The whole building was surrounded.

He turned to his Master and saw him draw his wand and aim it at every entrance, blocking them with dark blue flames.

"That will give us a minute or two. You three," he said, pointing at some of the still shocked Death Eaters, "follow Severus."

He then turned to face him and spoke again.

"Take only the prisoners that can still be useful. Leave the others behind. When you are done meet me again. You know where to find me."

The walls were shaking by then from the power of the spells the Aurors were using to get in and the flames had turned pale blue. They wouldn't hold much longer. The Dark Lord raised his wand again and muttered a few words, lifting some of the wards, before turning to the other men.

"The rest of you," he said, his voice loud and full of anger, "Apparate away," and the next second he was gone.

Some of the spells were already going through the flames and hitting the walls inside the building, and the rest of the Death Eaters present followed their Master's lead and Disapparated. Soon there were only four men left inside. "To the dungeons," Severus yelled then as he put his mask back on.

They ran down the stairs until they reached the first dark room. He lit the candles on the walls with a flick of his wand and walked to the cells. After just a moment's thought, he opened two of them. "Take these two and leave. There are still anti-Apparition wards here, so use the pathway on the other floor."

He turned around when he heard the first footsteps on the stairs. They were almost there. He looked back at the only Death Eater left with him and whispered, "Follow me," before running to the opposite side of the room and down the other set of stairs.

After just a few moments, they stepped into a big circular room. With another flick of his wand, the centre of the room was lit, but the rest remained in shadows. There were over twenty pillars around the room, and most had people chained to them. At the sight of them, a few prisoners started to scream, others to cry, but he quickly stunned them all. He still needed a few more minutes and didn't want the Order finding them before then.

He pointed his wand at a man and a woman chained together and released them. He then muttered a spell, making the bodies float and sending them to the Death Eater as he ordered him to take them away.

There was only one more prisoner they would need, but before he could take him, he heard voices and more footsteps down the stairs.

With just two steps, he found himself hidden in the shadows, his back to the wall. The sounds grew closer then, and soon he saw six people walk into the room.

He tightened his grip on the wand as he waited to see what they would do.

"Do you think they are gone?" he heard one of them ask. It was Potter.

"It seems they are," Lupin's calm voice answered.

The other four soon joined them in the centre of the room, an all too recognizable bushy haired woman and three more people he didn't know. Probably Ministry Aurors, he thought.

Without uttering a single word, he aimed his wand at two of them, and they were lying on the floor before anyone even noticed he was there. As soon as the second jet of light left his wand he ducked and ran, still hidden in the darkness, avoiding the spells and curses shot his way. He watched as the four remaining people circled the fallen ones, back to back, wands aiming in every direction, eyes searching the area.

He started pacing the room, keeping his back against the wall, trying to decide what to do. He couldn't leave without the last prisoner. After a few seconds, he stopped again, facing Potter. He knew he had to act fast, couldn't give them time to think. He shot a curse at the boy and watched him easily deflect it. They all turned to the spot the light had come from, and he used the distraction to jump to the side, avoiding their spells, and stun the man standing next to Potter. Ducking again, he watched him fall. Only three left now.

He knew they were holding back in fear of hitting the people chained to the pillars, and he used that to his advantage, but they finally did what they should have done from the beginning, they lowered the light and stepped into the shadows.

With the advantage of having his eyes already adjusted to the darkness, he watched them spread, each walking in a different direction, circling the room to find him. He knew Potter was somewhere to his left and Lupin in front of him, on the other side of the room, so he decided to take care of the boy first. He sent a minor curse blindly in the direction he knew the boy was, and as soon as he heard him gasp and block it, he sent a much more powerful one, sending him flying against the wall.

He heard a loud thud as the boy fell to the floor, unconscious, but the next second light filled the room again, blinding him long enough to get hit by a spell. He felt something cut deep into his flesh, blood running down his leg as he tried to remain standing and block the next curse.

He could see Lupin walking closer to him, and focused on blocking the spells coming from him he groaned in surprise when he felt another cut on his arm, the spell coming from his side and making him drop his wand. As he cursed and held his injured arm with his other hand he heard her gasp, and then whisper "Oh, no," and he knew she had recognized him.

He looked back at the wizard, watched him lift his wand again, but before he could mutter any words she screamed "Remus, no," and ran to him, pushing him in the last second and making the spell miss Severus by inches.

Lupin fell to the floor, his confused eyes on her. "Hermione, what…?" he asked, and then, seeming to understand, he looked back at him, but before he could do anything else Severus had his wand in his hand once more and pointing it at him he stunned him.

"Why did you do that?" he heard her ask.

"I don't want him to see me."

"Are you alright?" she asked worriedly as she watched him, noticing the blood covering his robes.

"I'm fine," he said, and tried to walk to one of the pillars for support.

"Wait, let me heal those cuts," she muttered as she walked to his side.

"No, I can do that later. There's no time now, I have to leave before others find me here." He looked around the room and found the man he was looking for. Pointing his wand at him, he freed him from the chains and made him float his way.

"Who is that?" she asked.

"A wandmaker. I have to take him with me."

"What? Where?"

"To the Dark Lord, we can't leave him behind." He could tell she wanted to ask many things, and was glad she didn't. He slowly walked to the hidden door, but turned back to her as he reached it.

"I have to stun you; we can't have them ask questions." He watched her consider it and then nod.

"Will Lupin be a problem? I could obliviate him."

"No, I can take care of that. He won't say anything."

"There's a hidden room behind one of the cells on the other floor. You will find Ollivander there. We will talk again soon," he said, and then pointed his wand at her, a red jet of light hitting her and making her fall.


	23. I don't know

"Hermione," she heard, her name whispered as someone took her hand, trying to pull her to her feet. She groaned when she felt the room spin, her head feeling like it just might explode.

"Are you alright?" the voice asked then, two strong hands on her hips keeping her from falling and only when she opened her eyes she realized it was Ron.

"What's happened?" she asked, and then she remembered.

"We just found you all stunned. I think you hit your head when you fell." But she was barely listening. She looked around until she found the person she was looking for. Her eyes set on Remus, a silent question in them he answered with a simple nod. He would keep her secret.

"Kingsley," she muttered, her eyes searching the room again, trying to find the Auror. She finally saw him on the other side of the room.

"Who are all these people?" she asked as she reached him, looking at the men and woman still chained to the pillars.

"They are some of the witches and wizards the Death Eaters captured during the last two years."

"Where are you taking them?" she said as she watched some of the Aurors carrying them up the stairs.

"To St. Mungo's. We don't know what the Death Eaters did to them, what condition they are in."

"They were all gone by the time we got here," he said after a few moments.

"Not all of them," she answered looking around the room, not sure of what else to say.

"Do you know anything else about what happened?" he asked then, and she avoided his eyes as she answered a simple "No."

"These are the last two," a tall Auror said as he walked to where they were standing.

"Good, take them with the others and go back to the Ministry."

She waited for the man to walk away before whispering to Kingsley.

"There's a hidden room behind one of the cells upstairs, have you found it?"

"No, what's there?" he asked slowly, his eyes narrowed.

"Ollivander," she whispered back just before Harry and Ron reached them.

"Are you feeling better?" Ron asked, and she was glad for the interruption.

"Yes, and you, Harry?"

"I'm fine," he said, but looked upset. "Did you get to see who it was?"

"No, I was stunned like the others."

"Is there anything we can do to help?" she heard Ron ask Kingsley then.

"Well, you can go back upstairs and look through what they left behind, see if there's anything useful." She noticed him trying to catch her eye, so she just turned around and followed her friends up the stairs to the main floor.

"I wonder how they managed to get away so fast," Ron mumbled as they followed some of the Order members into the library.

"Don't know," Harry said, shrugging. "You think they knew we were coming?" Hermione stiffened for a second, but did her best to hide her expression as she started looking through the stacks of parchment left on one of the tables. She had been thinking the same thing, wondering if Snape had told Voldemort they were coming. Or maybe it had been someone else. Why would he tip them off? It didn't make any sense.

"If they knew they probably wouldn't have left all this behind," she offered and they nodded in agreement, busy with the papers too.

"Follow me," she heard, the words whispered by her ear so no one else would hear as someone walked by, and she turned around to see Remus walking to an empty corner of the library. After hesitating for a moment she decided to go after him. He knew too much and she had to make sure it would stay between them.

She stood next to him, both pretending to look through the books in the shelves as they spoke.

"What happened down there?"

"What do you mean?"

"The Death Eater that attacked us, was he the one you're working with?"

"Yes," she finally whispered.

"And he told you to get us all here."

"He did."

"Then why did he attack us? Why did he stun me?"

"He didn't want anyone to see him. His work is already too dangerous as it is."

"So what was he doing down there, why hadn't he left with the others?"

"I don't know, Remus," she sighed.

"I had to lie to everyone in the Order, telling them I didn't know what had happened."

"I know, and I'm sorry I put you in this situation."

"Found anything interesting?" Tonks asked, startling them both. They hadn't even heard her approaching.

"Just books on dark magic," Remus answered.

"I think I'll go help Harry and Ron over there," she said, thanking Remus before walking to her friends.

It took little over two hours to take everything seemingly useful to the Ministry or Headquarters, where they would carefully go through it again the next day. They had found a few lists of witches and wizards the Death Eaters planned to capture, now under surveillance, and some confidential information from inside the Ministry. They seemed to have a spy among them.

The excitement from the attack had worn off by the time they left the place, and they all went to bed as soon as they got back to headquarters.

She entered the bedroom before Ginny did, and noticed a piece of parchment lying on her pillow.

'Ireland,' was all it said. She wondered for a moment if she should just wait and go there the next day, but decided she wouldn't. There were many things she wanted to ask.

She waited until she was sure everyone was asleep before tiptoeing downstairs and out of the house, Apparating to his place.

As she opened the door and stepped in she saw him sitting in one of the sofas on the library, reading a book. He put it down when he heard her enter, motioning for her to sit too.

"They took the prisoners to St. Mungo's, right?" he asked as soon as she was sitting.

"Of course."

"Some of them are under the Imperius Curse, make sure they check everyone."

"Did you tell them we were coming?" she finally decided to ask after a few moments of silence.

"Yes."

"Why?"

"Because I had to prove the Dark Lord my role as a spy was still important," he answered calmly.

"You could have told us, me, what you were planning."

"I told you what you needed to know."

"Our attack was meant to be a surprise. You hadn't even told me how many Death Eaters would be there. If you were planning on telling them we would go all along you could have at least warned me. I think I've earned the right to know." He looked at her for a few moments before answering.

"The plan was for everyone to just leave before you got there, but the Dark Lord is unpredictable, so I couldn't be completely sure he wouldn't stay and put up a fight. You had to be ready for the fight that could take place, and if you'd known about the plan you wouldn't have been prepared."

"I wouldn't have told the others," she muttered. "You should have told me."

"Did Potter take the Potion again?" he asked, clearly trying to change the subject.

"He did" she answered irritably.

"And…?"

"He saw another Horcrux, but it's already been destroyed."

"What did he see?"

"Tom Riddle's diary."

"Another memory?"

"No. He saw him creating the diary and then turning it into a Horcrux."

"It's still useless. Of course, I shouldn't be surprised the boy cannot do something as simple as taking a potion. He's just an arrogant little boy, like his father was."

"Well, he's trying," she said, her anger rising. "And you have no right to talk about him that way," she said, standing up. "We are not your students anymore, you could show some respect," and with that she turned around to leave, but after only two steps a hand on her arm stopped her.

"There's no need to get upset, Miss Granger. Please sit down, we still have matters to discuss." She opened her mouth to retort, but he stopped her. "Please?" he asked, and walked her back to the sofa.

"The Dark Lord isn't pleased with what happened today. He is planning new attacks, on several places at once, including some Muggle towns. He will send small groups of Death Eaters to each location tomorrow night, but I don't know where. I'll make sure the Dark Mark is cast when the attack begins, but the Aurors will have to be ready."

"I already told you Kingsley said…"

"I'm not asking for his help," he interrupted. "I'm just warning. He can do whatever he wants to with the information I provide."

"I'll see what I can do," she retorted, getting up again.

"Just one more thing," he said, standing up and retrieving a small bottle from his pocket. He walked to where she was standing and handed it to her.

"Do you know what that is?" he asked.

"Yes," she said, as she looked at the pearly substance in the bottle.

"You have to keep it safe until I tell you to use it. Don't let anyone see it until then, I'll tell you what to do with it when the time comes."

She put the bottle in her pocket and looked back at him, surprised when she saw him move closer to her

"Is that all?" she asked, and instead of answering he buried his hand in her hair and crushed his lips to hers. She was almost breathless when they finally parted.

"So you've changed your mind?" she asked coldly.

"About what?"

"Well, yesterday you didn't seem to want me anywhere near you, remember?"

"Maybe you made me change my mind."

"Still all business?" she asked as he moved to kiss her again.

"Yes" he whispered.

"Fine." Taking a deep breath she turned around and almost strode to the door.

She heard him curse loudly and the next second he was behind her, his body pinning her to the door.

"Don't," he said by her ear. She felt his fingers on her shoulders, taking off her robe and throwing it to the side. His hands were on her breasts, his lips on her neck, his hips grinding against her back and she couldn't help but moan.

After a few moments his fingers moved to her shoulders and then, slowly, down her arms until they reached her wrists. As his lips on her neck kept her distracted, he took both her hands and pushed them flat against the door over her head.

He groaned in her ear as she pushed back against him. One of his hands kept her wrists pinned to the door as the other ran down her body and hooked his fingers into the band of her knickers.

She had almost forgotten she was mad at him, and when she tried to push him away he slipped his fingers inside of her. Her head fell back and he took her lips, his fingers moving as his thumb rubbed her clit. It was like he knew what she liked, what had her body writhing in just a few seconds.

She whimpered when he removed his hand, she had been so close. He turned her around to face him, her back to the door, and claimed her mouth again as he lowered his trousers and removed her knickers.

"What's this? You and me?" she asked as he pushed her skirt up. He looked into her eyes for a few moments before shaking his head and answering "I don't know."

She decided that was good enough for the time being, and before he could say anything else she buried her hand in his hair and pulled him closer, moaning in his mouth as he lifted her and thrust inside.

His strokes were fast and deep, almost desperate. She could hear him whispering by her ear, but couldn't understand what he was saying. One of his hands kept her arms pinned above her head once more as the other moved between them, finally letting her find the release she needed and taking him with her.

She felt him stiffen then, wincing as his hand covered his arm.

"He's calling. I have to go," he said as he straightened his clothes, and he was gone before she had time to say anything else.


	24. raids

Little Hangleton, he thought to himself as he Apparated and walked towards the house. He wondered why his Master kept going back to that place. He knew that his Muggle family had lived there. He also knew he had killed all three of them, his father and his grandparents, in that very house as a teenager.

He had used the place for hiding with Wormtail before he had finally recovered his body during the Triwizard Tournament, and now that their headquarters were not safe, he went back to that house.

Limping and still bleeding, he finally reached the house and walked inside.

"Master," he said, bowing, as he found him sitting in the dining room, books and rolls of parchment spread all over the table.

"Severus, what happened?"

"They entered a few moments after you left, my Lord," he answered as he walked closer to him.

"And what happened to you?" he asked as he noticed his blood soaked robes.

"They found me before I could leave." Voldemort walked to where he was standing and, with a flick of his wand, healed his wounds.

"Thank you, Master."

"Did you get the prisoners?"

"Some of them, the ones I thought were most important. We didn't have much time."

"Which ones?"

"The Unspeakables, the Auror, the Minister's assistant and the Wandmaker."

"Where are they now?"

"I told the others to leave them at the factory."

"Very well. Go there and make sure everything is taken care of. And set extra wards around the building."

"Yes, Master."

"Have you talked to the witch?"

"Not yet."

"I want you to find out exactly what Mulciber told them, and I want to know where they are keeping him and how they protect him."

"I told her to find that out. She will give me the address when we meet again."

"We will do it tomorrow night. Multiple attacks to distract them, and then you will get to him. Go find the witch, and then come back here."

"Yes, Master," he said again, bowing as he left the room again.

He Apparated to the Order's headquarters, knowing the place would be deserted. Lifting the wards, he walked inside and up the stairs, checking every room until he found the one he was looking for. He quickly scribbled a note and left it on top of one of the beds, next to a neatly folded dress he knew was hers.

As soon as he left the place, he went to the Death Eater's new headquarters. He had only stopped there for a moment before going to his Master, just long enough to leave the prisoners and a few instructions.

There were only a handful of men in there, the ones he had personally called in.

"Where did you leave them?" he asked, as soon as he reached one of them.

"They are in the back. We made a few cells and put them there."

"Did you wake them?"

"No, they are still stunned."

"Good, leave them like that. Now go find the others and tell them to meet me here," he ordered with his voice full of authority.

There were different ranks among Dark Lord's followers, and even after what had happened lately, he was still on the higher level, receiving orders only from the Dark Lord himself.

It took only a few minutes for the Death Eater to come back with the others, and as he sat at the head of the table, he motioned for them to join him.

"You will stay here tonight," he started, once they were all sitting. "Make sure the prisoners remain unconscious and set extra wards on their cells." He waited until they all nodded before continuing. "We had to leave everything behind when we left headquarters, but we had copies of almost everything here. You will sort through it and then leave it in the library; I want to know what is missing. I also need to know exactly what kind of information was lying around when they attacked us. Find out what was there, lists of prisoners, targets, informants, plans, everything. We need to know what the Ministry and the Order can find there. You can contact the others if you need to, but don't bring them here, not yet. Any question?" he asked, looking at them all as he stood up.

"Do you know how they found our headquarters?" one of them asked him.

"Yes, but now is not the time to discuss that. Anything else?" He waited a few seconds, and when none of them spoke again he walked to the door. "Get started then, we need it done fast," he commanded and left the building.

He had waited at his place for her to go see him. He wanted to know what had happened after he had stunned her and left, and needed to warn her about what Voldemort was planning.

He wasn't exactly sure how it had happened, but they ended up like they always did lately, lost in each other's bodies. He was still inside of her when he felt the Mark on his arm burn. His Master was calling him, and he knew he couldn't make him wait.

He Apparated to what looked like a small, long abandoned factory; their new headquarters.

Surprised to see so many Death Eaters there, he walked through the rooms until he found his Master, sitting in an armchair by the fire.

"You wanted to see me, Master?"

"Yes. Do you know where Mulciber is already?"

"I do."

"Good. We are planning the raids for tomorrow night, five of them. You will use the distraction to get to Mulciber. Find out what he told them, and make sure he never speaks again," he said. "Take two or three men with you, in case they still have Aurors guarding him."

"Yes, my Lord."

"Now go help the others with the planning. There aren't many Death Eaters here I can trust with it, so you will be in charge."

"Thank you, Master. I will make sure we are ready for tomorrow night. You will not be disappointed."

It was almost midday by the time he finally left the Factory. They had spent the entire night deciding what places to attack, finally settling for three Wizarding cities and two Muggle towns. The idea was to attack all those places at once, forcing both the Ministry and the Order to send as many wizards and witches as possible, but in small groups. They did not intend to take the places; their orders were to simply 'have fun'.

He had already warned her there would be attacks that night, to be ready for it, but he couldn't tell her where they would be. It would be too much of a give away.

By sunset, the new Factory was filled with Death Eaters, all of them going through the details of the plan and deciding which group they would be in.

He decided to take Amycus and Jugson with him, the same men that had joined him in Australia. He told them they would first join the others in the attacks. He wanted to make sure the distractions worked before going after Mulciber, he had explained.

Once the five groups were ready he joined one and Apparated with them.

He looked around at the peaceful Muggle town they were about to attack, the surrounding only disturbed by the group of masked men. He watched the Death Eaters spread silently and break into some of the houses, walking back out after just a few minutes, terrified screaming Muggles floating around them.

Soon they had a group of men and women, and even one child, and they took turns at hexing and scaring them while the others laughed and cheered. Taking a step back, he watched the mask men for a few moments, until his eyes set on one in particular. Making sure the others were too distracted to notice, he aimed his wand at him and muttered 'Imperio'. After a few more seconds and a few well-chosen words, he watched the man look up at the sky and conjured the Dark Mark.

The laughter died out almost immediately, and one of them yelled, "Who did it? Who conjured it?" but before anyone could answer, they heard the loud sounds of Apparition. The Aurors were there.

"Let's go," he yelled at Jugson. "Go get Amicus and wait for me with the other group."

He took a few minutes to Apparate to the other Muggle town under attack, and once more used the Imperius curse to get one of the Death Eaters conjure the Mark. The Aurors would know about the attacks on Wizarding places soon, but he had to let them know where else to go.

When he Apparated to Diagon Alley he was surprised by what he saw. Being an important Wizarding city and knowing the Aurors and Order members would be there fast, they had sent the larger group there, over twenty Death Eaters.

With his back against the buildings, he walked down the Alley, searching for Amycus Jugson and watching the Aurors, Death Eaters and Order members firing, and being hit by spells and curses. He could see terrified witches and wizards running inside the buildings and trying to hide in dark corners.

A cold, crazy laugh made him look around, and he gasped as he saw a cornered and wandless Potter, and Bellatrix Lestrange towering over him.

"Not so brave now, little baby Potter?" she asked mockingly, and then raised her wand to him. There were too many Death eaters around him, and he couldn't risk them seeing him hex the witch, but he had to do something.

"My Master will be most pleased when he finds out I killed you," she said, and laughed again. He watched her move her wand and start muttering the killing curse, and he knew he had to act fast.

He saw a Wizard run past him and, aiming carefully, he yelled 'Expelliarmus'. The wizard was propelled backwards, hit by the spell, and knocked Bellatrix to the floor. He saw then Potter's wand lying on the floor, out of his reach, and, with another spell, sent it flying into the boy's hand. Surprised, Potter looked around and soon locked his eyes on him. He watched the boy frown and narrow his eyes as he tried to find an explanation for what had just happened, but Snape turned around and ran in the other direction before he had time to recognize him or say anything.

He kept moving and hexing a few Aurors and Order members on his way, sometimes because he knew another Death Eater was watching, others just to defend himself. He was halfway down the Alley when he saw her. She was walking slowly, barely paying any attention to her surroundings, and after a few seconds, he noticed she was carrying something. Or someone, actually. He could only see black robes and red hair, from where he was standing, but that was enough to tell it was a Weasley.

He crossed the street and stopped when she looked at him, a terrified expression on her face, as she lifted her wand. If it had been another Death Eater, she would have been dead already. He held his hand up for a second, and saw her relax when she realized it was him. Taking another step closer, he took hold of Weasley's other arm and helped her pull him to a dark side street.

"What happened to him?" he asked, kneeling in front of the boy, searching for any visible injury. It was Ronald Weasley.

"He was hit by a curse. The Death Eater was aiming at me, but Ron got in the way," she said, and then kneeled next to him.

"Is he going to be alright?"

Instead of answering, he pointed his wand at the boy's chest and tried a few spells, but he didn't wake up. He reached down the boy's legs and took off one of his shoes. He put it under the boy's hand and, pointing his wand at it, he muttered 'Portus'. In just a few seconds, the boy was gone.

"Where did you send him? What's wrong with him?" she asked him, beginning to panic.

"Calm down," he whispered, taking off his mask, standing up and pulling her to her feet. "I sent him to St. Mungo's, they will take care of him there."

"Oh, Merlin, Ron," she muttered, and then put her arms around him, her head resting against his chest.

"He was lucky he wasn't hit fully, or he would be dead," he said, and felt her arms tighten around him.

"Calm down," he repeated, and pulled her closer to him.

"You have to be more careful," he whispered by her ear. "That was very powerful Dark Magic. If that curse had hit you…" he trailed off, and was slightly surprised when she tilted her head and brushed her lips to his.

As soon as he felt it, he buried his hand in her hair, pulling her closer, deepening the kiss. The thought of losing her suddenly scared him more than he would dare to admit.

Voices near them brought them back to reality and, as the sound grew closer, he put his arms tightly around her and Apparated them to another dark street on the other side of the Alley.

"I have to go," he said, and put his mask back on. "Did they move Mulciber again?"

"No," she answered.

"Will you be alright here?" he asked, concerned.

"Yes," she whispered. "What will happen to him?"

"Mulciber?" he asked, and she nodded.

"He has to pay for telling the Aurors how to find the Dark Lord's headquarters."

"But…" He watched her eyes widen as she understood what he was saying, but before she could ask anything else, they heard new voices coming closer.

"Hide," he hissed as he watched two masked figures walk down that street, carrying a screaming witch between them.

"Oh, I love it when they fight," one of them said as the witch tried to bite his hand, and the other laughed aloud.

"Jugson, Amycus," Snape said, having recognized the voices. He watched the two men stop dead on their tracks, trying to find him in the darkness.

"Snape?" one of them muttered.

"Where were you?" he asked. "You were supposed to meet me long ago."

"We were just having a bit of fun," they answered.

"Leave the witch, we have to go."

"But…" one of them started to protest.

"Now," he ordered, and both men let go of the woman's arms at once.

"Let's go," he said then. "You know where."

He waited for them to go and then turned to the woman on the floor. With a flick of his wand, he erased the memories of the last hour, making sure she wouldn't remember his name. Then he Apparated away too.

When he opened his eyes again he was standing in front of a small, dark house with the number 36 painted on the door.

"There might still be Aurors inside," he said, as he walked to where the other two men were standing. "Be careful."

After lifting the wards protecting the place, he opened the door. The moment he stepped in, he saw Mulciber, sitting on a small sofa, his back to them. Before the others could walk in, he pointed his wand at the man and muttered a complex spell.

A few seconds after it hit him, the man stood up and turned around, his eyes lazed for another moment.

"What's the matter, Mulciber?" he asked, when the man's eyes widened in surprise and fear at seeing him there. "You thought we wouldn't find you?"

Mulciber looked confused for a second, but when he finally spoke, Snape sighed in relief. The Memory Modifying charm had worked.

"It's not… I can explain, please."

"Explain? You betrayed your Master!"

He saw a jet of light hit the man then, and he fell to the floor, twisting and screaming. After a few minutes, he held up his hand and Amycus lifted the curse.

"What did you tell them?" he asked then.

"Nothing, I didn't tell them anything," the man cried from the floor, and the next second he was screaming again.

"You should know better than that, Mulciber, you can't lie to me," Snape told him once the curse was lifted again. "What did you tell them?"

"I just…I just told them how to get to our headquarters, that's all. I didn't want to, but they made me do it," he said, panting and scared.

They all winced when they felt the Mark on their arms burn.

"We don't have time for this," Snape muttered as he walked closer to Mulciber. "What else do they know?" he asked, and as soon as the man's eyes settled on his, he muttered 'Legilimens'. A few moments passed and everyone in the room remained silent as Snape searched the other man's mind.

"He's telling the truth, that is all he told them," he finally said as he moved back to the door.

"You know the orders," he told Amycus and Jugson as he opened the door. The room shined green for a moment, and then it was dark again. "Let's go," he ordered, and they all stepped out of the house. He didn't even set the wards again, Why bother?

He raised his wand and muttered 'Morsmordre'. Looking up at the sky, he could see the green, glowing skull he had just conjured.

"Go," he yelled at the two men as the first Aurors arrived, and the three of them Apparated away.


	25. so good

The battle had continued for about half an hour after Snape had left. Then the Dark Mark had been conjured, and all the Death Eaters had Apparated away at once.

Once the fight was over, Ministry workers soon took control of the situation, going through the wounded and sending the ones they couldn't heal themselves to St. Mungo's.

She heard someone scream her name, and turned around to find Harry running in her direction, waiving to her. She sighed in relief at seeing he was alright, but once he reached her, she noticed he looked pale and nervous.

"What's wrong?" she asked, looking him over, trying to see if he was hurt.

"I'm fine", he said distractedly. "Where are the others?"

"I don't know, I haven't seen them since we got here," she answered, and they both started searching the Alley, looking for familiar faces. She had been looking for the Weasleys ever since Snape had left, but with no luck.

"Harry, Hermione," she heard Ginny's voice call. They almost ran to where she was, and found her surrounded by her mother and older brothers.

"Where's Mr. Weasley?" Harry asked as they reached them.

"He's with most of the Order, helping the wounded," Bill said.

"Where's Ron?" Molly asked then, fear in her voice.

"I don't know. I haven't seen him since we got here. I thought he was with you," Harry answered.

"He's at St. Mungo's," Hermione said.

"What? Why?" Molly asked before she could explain. "What's happened to him? Is he alright?"

"He was hit by a curse, he…"

"Oh, Merlin," Molly gasped. "What curse? When did this happen?"

"I don't know," she said, feeling sorry she couldn't give the woman more information.

Molly looked around wide-eyed, and then back at her, too scared to say another word.

"We should go there, then," Bill suggested, and they all agreed.

"Wait, we have to tell dad," Ginny said as they were about to leave.

"Stay here," the twins said as one and walked to the other side of the Alley. She watched them search the crowd until they finally stopped next to a wizard. They spoke to the man for a few seconds, and then she saw him turn around and nod in their direction once, before leaving what he was doing and Apparating away.

As soon as the twins were back with them, Molly held her daughter's arm tightly and they all Apparated to St. Mungo's.

They were surprised to find the usually much calmer building so full of witches and wizards, some unconscious on the chairs, or even the floor, some screaming, some crying, Healers running around the room, trying to decide who needed their help first.

"Merlin, do you think he's still here, waiting?" Ginny asked, looking for her brother.

"He got here almost an hour ago, I'm sure they already sent him to a Healer."

They all looked at her in surprise, having guessed, Ron had been sent there after the fight was over.

"Maybe we should ask the Welcome Witch," Hermione said, trying to distract them.

"Oh, right. Yes," Molly breathed, still clearly nervous, and walked hurriedly to the desk. After about ten more minutes, a lot of angry yelling, and some crying from Molly, the witch finally agreed to tell them where to find Ron.

They all walked silently to the fourth floor, ward forty-five, but were stopped by a young man as they reached the doors.

"I'm sorry, but you can't be here," he said, standing in front of the entrance.

"What do you mean? My son is in there."

"I'm sorry, Madam, but you have to go back to the ground floor and wait there."

"But the Welcome Witch told me to come here."

"Well, you must be very convincing. She has orders not to let anyone up for now," he said.

"Please, I just want to see him. I need to know he is alright."

"What's your son's name?" the man asked, hearing the hint of desperation in Molly's voice.

"Ronald. Ronald Weasley."

"I will go find Healer Smethwyck and ask him about your son, but you have to wait here," he said sternly, and then turned around, opened the doors, and walked inside the ward.

The minutes felt like hours as they waited, but finally the man was back.

"They're still busy with him, but the Healer assured me he would be alright," he said, and Molly let out a loud sob of relief. "He will talk to you himself when he's finished, you can wait there," he said, pointing to a small sitting room.

"Thank you so much," Molly said gratefully, taking the man's hand, and then they all walked to the other room to wait.

They had only been there a few minutes when Arthur walked in; looking like he had ran all the way there.

"Where is he? Is he alright?" he asked, panting, as soon as he reached the door.

"Oh, Arthur!" Molly whispered and ran to him.

"What? What's happened?" he asked, looking at his other children, suddenly terrified.

"He will be alright," Bill told him, and he visibly relaxed, still holding his wife in his arms.

"What happened to him?" he asked again, and everyone in the room turned to face Hermione. She had been hoping they wouldn't ask.

"I was fighting a Death Eater," she explained. "He was firing hex after hex, but I finally managed to stun him. Then I turned around, and another one was behind me. I heard him yell some words, but didn't even have time to duck; then Ron appeared out of nowhere and pushed me to the side. As I fell I shot a stunner at the second Death Eater, but when I turned back around I saw Ron lying on the floor, unconscious." She took a deep breath and the continued. "I carried him out of the Alley, away from the battle, but I didn't know what else to do. A man saw us then, and helped me pull him away. I think he was with the Ministry," she lied. "He tried to wake him up but couldn't, so he used a Portkey to send him here."

They remained silent as she explained what had happened, and even after she was done, no one spoke for a few moments.

"And you don't know what cursed they hit him with?" Arthur finally asked.

"No, but the man said it was Dark Magic."

Silence filled the room again as they waited for news from the Healers.

"You are here to see Ronald Weasley?" a man asked as he walked inside the waiting room, checking his noted to get the name right.

"Yes," they said as they stood up.

"I'm Healer Wren, I work with Healer Smethwyck."

"Where's Ron?"

"Is he alright?"

"Can we see him?"

Voices filled the room before the Healer could say anything.

"Please, calm down," he pleaded. "He will be fine. He hasn't woken up yet, but he should by tomorrow afternoon. He was very lucky," he said, with a slight smile. "That curse is illegal for a reason; it's very powerful Dark Magic. If it had hit him fully, or if it had taken longer to get him here…" he trailed off.

"I assume he was hit during one of the Death Eater's attacks tonight," he said after a few seconds.

"Yes," Arthur answered. "In Diagon Alley."

"An Auror will be here later to question you and Ronald tomorrow."

"Can we go see him now?" Molly asked.

The Healer looked at the eight people around him thoughtfully before answering. "Maybe just the two of you for now," he finally said, looking at Molly and Arthur.

"Why don't you all go over to the Tearoom?" Arthur suggested.

"We will wait here," Ginny said, and they all nodded in agreement.

Finally, after a few more hours, Molly came back and asked them to go home, promising they could see Ron the next day. By the time they got back to headquarters it was well past midnight, so they were surprised to find several Order members still up, sitting around the kitchen table and talking animatedly. Remus had told them Ron was at St. Mungo's, but that was all they knew.

As they joined in the conversation, Harry and the Weasleys telling the others about Ron and asking if anyone else was hurt, Kingsley walked to where she was standing and motioned for her to follow him.

"What happened tonight?" he asked her as soon as they were out of earshot.

"What do you mean?"

"There were five attacks, two of them in Muggle towns."

"I warned you they would attack. I told you everything I knew."

"For some reason I have the feeling you know much more than you're telling me," he said. "You asked me to move that Death Eater, Mulciber; to leave him in an unguarded flat."

"Yes."

"He's dead, murdered by Death Eaters just a few hours ago." She took a deep breath before speaking.

"I told you where Voldemort's headquarters were, how to get there," she said, and he nodded. "Only Death Eaters know its location."

"So?"

"So someone had to take the blame," she answered simply.

"He might have been a murderer, but it wasn't up to you to decide his fate, to have me send him somewhere to be murdered."

"Voldemort knew there had been a leak, we had to make sure he wouldn't suspect the real spy."

"And who is 'we', Hermione?"

"You know I can't tell you that. You will know when the time is right," she said sternly.

"I trust you, you know I do, but you shouldn't be caught in the middle of this. We are fighting a war, and hard decisions have to be made, but you will carry that weight on your back forever, I know what I'm talking about," the Auror said. "The fact that your information has helped us save many lives, helped us capture dangerous Death Eaters, doesn't change the consequences of the choice you were forced to make, sending a man to his death like that. You are working with someone we don't know, passing such important information that you would be murdered if anyone found out; or worse. It's a dangerous game you are playing here, Hermione."

"I'm not playing, Kingsley. I will do anything I have to do to help Harry win this war; it's as simple as that."

He was about to retort, but then he seemed to change his mind. Suddenly he looked worn and tired. With a sigh, he spoke again.

"It's late, you should get some sleep," he said, his voice much calmer. "We will discuss this some other time." He started walking back to the kitchen, but stopped a few steps away from her. "I want to talk to him, can you arrange a meeting?"

"I'll see what I can do."

"Goodnight," he said after nodding, then walked to the kitchen and said goodbye to everyone else before leaving.

She tried to sleep, she really did, but there were too many things in her head now. With a frustrated sigh, she finally got up and walked out of the bedroom and down the stairs, but she stopped before she reached the kitchen. She had gone up to bed right after Kingsley had left, but from the noises, she could hear she knew the others were still awake in there.

Not really feeling like talking to them, and not wanting to go back to bed either, there was only one thing she could think of doing. Tiptoeing back up the stairs, she entered the room Harry shared with Ron, walked over to his trunk and took his invisibility cloak. Making sure she was completely covered with it, she crept downstairs to the door, and noiselessly left headquarters.

She held her breath as she opened the door, afraid to find someone else in the house. She noticed the place was completely dark, except for a faint light coming from the library. Guessing she would find him there, she walked down the hallway still covered with Harry's cloak, and stopped as she reached the room.

Lit only by a few candles, the place looked even bigger than it had in broad day. As her eyes adjusted to the light, she finally saw Snape, dressed in his usual black clothes, sitting at the table, his nose almost touching the parchment in front of him. She looked around, making sure they were alone, and then stepped closer to him, wanting to see what he was reading. She froze in place when a floorboard creaked under her feet, holing her breath as she waited for his reaction, but he was so engrossed in his reading he didn't seem to notice the sound.

She waited a few second and then dared move, but stopped again when he sighed loudly and stretched, slowly getting up. She only realized what was happening in the very last second, barely locking the cursed aimed blindly but with surprising accuracy; she threw the cloak off her shoulders before he could fire again, screaming, "It's me," as she held up her hands. She was surprised by the look of concern that crossed his face, but one of rage soon replaced it.

"What are you doing here?" he hissed, stepping closer to her and lighting the many torches around the room with a flick of his wand.

Well, what _was_ she doing there? To be honest, she had no idea. She just couldn't sleep, and didn't feel like joining her friends, so visiting him seemed to be a good choice, but she couldn't very well tell him that.

"Well," he pressed, after a few moments of silence.

"I just wanted to make sure you were alright," she said, not entirely a lie.

"I told you not to come here unless I asked you to. It could be dangerous."

"I know, but I was worried. I still remember what happened the last time you were in charge of an attack," she said, remembering how she had found lying on the floor, covered in blood and barely alive. She saw his face soften slightly.

"Well, you can see I'm perfectly fine," he said. "Now what?"

"I don't know." After a few moments, he sighed and walked to a small sofa, motioning for her to join him as he sat.

"How is your friend?"

"He's still at St. Mungo's, but the Healer said he will be alright. Thanks to you," she said, the last part a whisper.

"He was very lucky."

"Did you kill Mulciber?" she asked after a few minutes, breaking the silence and he nodded.

"I had to, otherwise the Dark Lord would have killed me, and I'm useless dead."

"I talked to Kingsley tonight."

"What does he want now?" he asked irritably.

"He's just worried about me"

"What did he say?" he questioned, his voice softer now.

"He asked me what had happened to Mulciber, and I told him what I knew. He wants to talk to you, asked me to arrange a meeting." He seemed to think about it for a few moments before finally answering.

"Remember the cabin in the woods?" he asked, and she felt her throat go dry at the mere thought. Of course, she remembered the place; Lucius Malfoy had almost killed her there not so long ago. She just nodded, unable to speak.

"I want you to take him there tomorrow night, at ten. Just leave him there and Apparate away. Tell him I will meet him there, but don't tell him who I am."

"But if he sees you…" she rasped.

"Don't worry, he won't. I will be wearing my mask. He won't know who he is talking to. Just make sure no one follows you."

"I will. I should probably go now, before Ginny notices I'm gone," she whispered after a moment, stood up and quickly walked to the door.

"Wait," he said as she reached the doorway, and she turned around to find him rummaging in one of his pockets. "I have something for you."

She stepped closer as he held out a small piece of paper in his hand. Her eyes fell instantly on the single word visible. 'Hermione,' it read; it was her mother's handwriting. She could feel her eyes tear up as she reached for the letter and opened it. It wasn't very long, and it only took her a few minutes to read it.

Her parents were worried about her, wondering why she hadn't written yet. She was glad to read they were alright. The house they were staying at was big and comfortable, her mother had written, but they couldn't to go out. 'Your friend,' as her mother called Snape, had visited them a few times, making sure they were safe and providing everything they could need. They even had a House-elf staying with them to help.

'Please, send a letter soon. Your father and I are worried about you; we just want to make sure you are safe.'

"They were wondering why you hadn't Owled yet, fearing something had happened to you, but I told them not to worry, assured them I would contact them if anything bad happened," he said.

She didn't know what to say. With everything that had happened lately, she had forgotten to Owl them; knowing they were safe, she had just pushed them out of her mind, focussing on more pressing matters.

"Can I see them?" she asked.

"No, but you don't need to worry, they are safe."

She was so grateful, surprised he had taken care of her parents, visited them when their own daughter hadn't even written them a letter. She couldn't think of any words that could let him know just how much she appreciated everything he had done for her and her family, so she did the only thing that came to mind.

With just two more steps she was in front of him again, one hand in his hair and the other around his neck, pulling him closer to her. Their lips met, the kiss slow and delicate, as she tried to convey her feelings, her thoughts. She nibbled on his lower lip and then, slowly, pushed her tongue inside, caressing his, deepening the kiss.

She felt like they had been kissing for hours, like she was lost inside of him, the world around them no longer important, and when they finally broke apart she whispered, "Thank you," against his lips.

She didn't have time to say anything else as he kissed her again, this time hungrily. She could feel his strong hands on her body, caressing her and pulling her even closer, flush against his body. Lost in desire and not wasting a moment, she started unbuttoning his shirt, the contrast between the black material and his pale skin so enthralling she couldn't help bur stare. He cleared his throat after a few moments, and she could feel herself blush. She looked up at him and kissed him again, if only just to wipe the smug look from his face.

Before long her robes were pooled around her feet and she had her arms around his neck and her legs around his waist, their lips still locked together as she felt him take a few steps and then slowly kneel on the floor. She could feel a hard surface behind her, and looked around just in time to see him vanish the books and pieces of parchment spread all over the small coffee table with his wand and then carefully lay her on top of it.

The glass was cold against her back, but she couldn't care less, the warm body on top of her making up for it. She felt his hands on her again, running up her legs, pulling the nightgown she was still wearing up, and then his fingers slowly caressing her inner thighs, her hips, her breasts.

She giggled when she felt his lips soft on her belly, tickling, but the sound turned to a moan as soon as his mouth moved again, stopping as he reached her core. She could feel his lips on her, and then his tongue, making her hips buck wildly.

"Please," she hears herself moan and his fingers moved back down her body, replacing his tongue inside of her. Her orgasm hit her so fast and with such force he had to move one of his hands to her hips to keep her in place, but when she came back down he didn't stop.

Her whole body was so sensitive she felt she couldn't take anymore, but Snape still didn't relent. With another loud moan she buried her fingers in his hair, trying to pull him away, only to pull him even closer the next second, feeling another orgasm building fast. She pushed her hips up, closer to him, and he groaned, sending delicious vibrations through her body and pushing her over the edge again.

She was panting loudly, her eyes closed as her body slowed down, his lips finally pulling away from her core and slowly kissing their way back up her skin, leaving a wet trail as they moved all the way up to her neck. His body was on top of her now, and she could feel his erection pressed against her thigh as he nibbled her neck. Her hands snaked down between them, fumbling with his slacks, trying to get them open, wanting to feel him inside of her again, but after a few moments, she finally groaned in frustration.

"Need help with that?" he asked, slightly amused, his hands easily unfastening them. Then, after a few more seconds, she finally felt skin against skin, his erection touching her, but not entering. She hooked her legs around his waist and pulled him closer, but he stopped her before he was completely inside. She groaned again, pushing her hips up against him, but he slowly pulled back out with a sneer.

Straightening himself, he grabbed her hips, hastily flipped her over, and then, at last, entered her in one hard thrust. She moaned in pleasure at the feeling, her back arching against his chest as he slowly pulled almost all the way out, thrusting back in even harder after a few seconds. She could feel the small table hard against her body, bruising, but she couldn't care less, not with Snape moving hungrily inside of her, his fingers teasing her clit.

"Come for me, witch," he growled in her ear, his free hand now on her shoulder, pushing her back against him every time he thrust forwards, and she complied instantly. She was still surprised at the effect the man had on her, not entirely sure how they always ended up like that, but certainly not complaining.

He rode her orgasm, making it last so long she thought it would never end, and when it finally did, he started thrusting into her harder, faster. She yelped when he buried his hand in her hair and yanked her head back, hungrily crushing his lips on hers in a bruising kiss. "So good," she heard him breathe in her ear, and she moaned loudly in return, their tongues fighting again the next second. After what felt like an eternity he broke the kiss and yanked her hair back again, pulling her from the table, her back flush against his chest, her arms around his neck, keeping his body close.

In this new position, she could feel him reach places inside of her she didn't even know existed, the sensations amazing, making her muscles clamp around him again, trapping him inside her and pushing him over the edge too.

She had never felt so tired in her entire life, and as soon as his arms left her hips, she collapsed on top of the table, her arms still around his neck, pulling him with her. She felt his lips on her neck again, this time kissing her softly, and she moaned, too exhausted to say anything else.

At length he pulled out of her and pushed himself back on his feet, wrapping an arm around her waist and helping her up too. He turned her to face him and they stood in silence for a few seconds, before he gently brushed his lips against hers. She wrapped her arms around his neck again, moaning and deepening the kiss, but as she opened her eyes she gasped, her gaze on the clock at the other end of the room.

"I have to go," she whispered, but as she tried to move, he tightened his arms, keeping her flush against him.

"I really do," she said, her voice hoarse from screaming. "If I'm not back before Ginny notices…"

With a grunt, he finally relented and released her, wrapping his arms around her again the next second, just as she felt her knees give way.

"I believe you are in no condition to Apparate on your own," he said, smugly. She watched him as he reached for his wand, and after a moment, they were both dressed once more and covered with Harry's invisibility cloak. He kissed her again as he walked to the door, half carrying her and taking his time, and when they finally left the house he Apparated them away.

"We are here," he whispered, breaking the kiss, and she groaned at the loss. He smiled then and pushed her roughly against the wall, right next to the headquarters' door, kissing her hungrily again, grinding his hips against hers as she buried her nails in his shoulders, wanting to pull him even closer.

"You have to go inside," he said, his body pushing against hers a few more seconds before he stepped back.

"Cruel," she whispered and he laughed loudly.

"Do you think you can walk?" he asked, and when she nodded, he gave her one last heated kiss before stepping away and Disapparating.

She waited for her heart to slow down and her legs to recover before going inside, up the stairs and into her bedroom. She froze on the spot when she saw Ginny sitting on her bed, clearly waiting for her.

She slowly turned around and closed the door behind her, trying to come up with an excuse as she did.

"Where were you?" Ginny asked, thankfully in a whisper. Before she could answer, another question left her lips. "Do you have any idea how worried I was? I thought someone had kidnapped you or something!"

"I just needed…"

"Oh, I can see what you needed," she said, looking at her neck, and Hermione felt herself flush. "You could've at least told me you were going to see your boyfriend."

"I know, Gin, I'm sorry. It wasn't really planned," she said, glad her friend thought it had been just a romantic escapade and not sure she wasn't right.

"Well, even a note would have been nice. I was just about to tell Harry you were gone." Her eyes widened then, and Ginny snorted angrily. "No need to worry, I didn't tell anyone."

"Oh, thank you, Ginny," she said gratefully, but the girl just got up, walked to her side of the room and got into bed. "If you ever do that again…" she threatened, and Hermione simply nodded.

As she was taking her robes off, she noticed something sticking out of her pocket. It was a blank piece of parchment and her parents' letter. Promising herself she would write back in the morning, she crept under the covers and instantly fell asleep, exhausted but with a smile on her face.


	26. interested in her

He Disillusioned himself and waited outside the cabin, by the small window. It was still a few more minutes until ten.

The sound of apparition made him turn around, and he saw two figures standing in the forest, a few feet from the door.

"Hermione, where are we?" a deep voice asked.

"Follow me," the other figure said, and they both walked inside the cabin and closed the door.

He watched them as they enter the cabin and then face each other. He couldn't hear what they were saying, but it seemed Hermione was explaining the situation to Kingsley. After a few moments, she turned around to leave, but stopped as she reached the door and faced Kingsley again, the man walking to where she was standing. He saw him lean closer to her then, a hand resting on her shoulder as he whispered in her ear. She looked confused for a moment, then nodded and whispered something back. He wasn't sure why, but he felt his blood boil at the gesture, at the intimacy of the situation.

He finally saw her leave and walked to the door, making sure the Auror stayed inside the cabin.

"Everything alright?" he asked as she closed the door.

She couldn't see him well, but recognized the voice instantly. "Yes," she answered.

"Very well. Go back to headquarters now, I will contact you again later," he said coldly.

She looked hurt and was about to leave when his hand on her shoulder stopped her. Acting on impulse, he yanked his mask off and crushed his lips on hers hungrily for a few moments, pushing her against the door. A part of him wanted to remind her he was all the man she could need, the other part firmly denying feeling anything even similar to jealousy.

After a few seconds, he broke the kiss and muttered, "Go." Without giving her time to answer he put his mask back on, pointed his wand at his throat for a second, opened the door, and walked inside the small cabin.

The moment he stepped inside the Auror turned from the window, his wand pointing straight at his Disillusioned figure. Smirking behind his mask, Severus stayed in place, his wand pointed back at the man as he said softly, "We are both grown men, Shacklebolt; I don't think there is any need for this kind of hostility."

"Who are you?" the Auror asked, not lowering his wand.

"I'm a friend, that's all you need to know for now," Severus said. He had used a simple spell to change his voice, so Kingsley wouldn't recognize him.

"I wouldn't consider a Death Eater a friend," the Auror said coldly. Instead of retorting, Severus pointed his wand at himself for a moment, lifting the Disillusionment charm.

"So you are the one working with Hermione?" Kingsley asked after a few seconds.

"Oh, the lovely Miss Hermione Granger," he breathed, wanting to see the other man's reaction. Kingsley stiffened for a moment, his expression hardened, and Severus didn't like it one bit. "Unfortunately, I'm not," he answered calmly. "We both have a friend in common. She actually doesn't even know who I am," he lied.

"Then you are not the one I wanted to meet," the Auror replied coldly.

"But I am all you are going to get. My friend wishes to remain anonymous.

"And why is that?"

"I'm surprised you even need to ask. You should know better than anyone, working for both the Ministry and the Order of the Phoenix. There are too many spies at large to take risks. He is in a very delicate position, as am I, working for the Dark Lord and against him at the same time.

"I'm sure you know all about spies," the man retorted, and Severus just sighed.

"We have a lot to discuss, and standing here, wands at the ready, is becoming tiring," he said, as he pointed his wand to one side of the room, making a table and two chairs appear out of thin air. "So if you don't mind." He sat down, put his wand on the table, close enough so that he could take it again in a heartbeat, and waited for the other man to sit too.

"So why did your friend agree to this meeting if he wasn't planning on assisting?"

"You wanted answers, and he decided to give you a few. That is what I am here to do."

"Why are you helping us?" was his first question.

"The Dark Lord is a very powerful wizard, but cruel and vicious, even with his most faithful followers. Let's just say some of them, _of us_, have grown tired of that kind of treatment."

"So you are just doing this for yourselves?"

"Look at me," he said, and waited a few seconds. "I am a Death Eater, and became one of my own free will, even if I don't believe in the same things anymore. I look after myself, always."

"How can we trust someone only interested in himself?"

"It's easy. I will always do what's best for me, and right now that means helping you. Why would I betray you?" he answered, and heard Kingsley snort.

"And how does Hermione fit into all this?" the Auror asked next.

Severus looked at him for a few moments, deciding what to answer. "She was in the wrong place, at the wrong time, something I hear isn't very unusual. She was lucky our friend was there to help her, or she would be long gone by now," he said evilly.

"She seems to really trust him, what did you do to her?"

"I am not sure what you are insinuating, but I assure you the girl is helping out of her own free will."

"She would never trust a Death Eater, not after everything you have done to people she cares about."

"Maybe you should ask her that. You do seem very interested in her," he said, trying to keep his voice even. He could see Kingsley's eyes narrow slightly.

"She is young and innocent; she should stay away from this war. She has already seen too much."

"I can assure you, she is not as innocent as you might think. She is part of this war already. Turning her back on it won't change a thing."

"Everything she's done is because of your friend. He shouldn't use her for his plans; he can find someone else to do it, he could pass the information to me directly. There is no need to put her through this anymore."

"You say everything she's done is because of us, when the truth is, it is all because of you. Her friends are part of the war, and she joined the Order of the Phoenix long before she started helping us. Everything she's done, she did it because of them, so make sure you put the blame where it belongs."

"Still, it's too dangerous; she could get hurt, or killed," Kingsley said softly.

"Death is part of life, more so in times of war. However, my friend is rather fond of the girl, I hardly believe he will let anything happen to her, not willingly at least."

"Fond? What do you mean?"

"What do you think?" he asked with a sneer. "You do seem very interested in the young lady," he continued. "Of course, it is quite understandable. She is a lovely young witch, pity she is a Mudbl…" Before the last word even left his lips, Kingsley was on his feet, his wand aimed at him. His reflexes kicking in, he was standing the next second, his fingers wrapped around his own wand, ready to fight the Auror if he had to.

"If you ever say that in front of me again, you won't have to worry about your Master anymore. Hermione is an incredibly powerful witch, as are many other Muggle-borns, and if you want to work for the Order you better…"

"I do believe we met here to discuss more important matters," Severus interrupted, trying to remain calm. He found Kingsley's protectiveness towards Hermione quite annoying, especially coming from the usually calm and quiet man. What gave him the right?

The Auror nodded in agreement, his eyes still flashing angrily, and he continued,

"During the raid to our headquarters the other night some important information was left behind," he said. "I'm sure you have the rolls of parchment from the library."

"That's right," Kingsley answered curtly.

"Have you found the lists?"

"What lists?"

"Don't play with me, Shacklebolt," he shot back, his own anger rising dangerously fast. "The ones with the names of our targets."

"Yes," he finally answered, after taking a deep breath.

"Are they under protection?"

"Of course."

"I believe there was also information on some of our spies in the Ministry?"

"What kind of information?"

"Don't test my patience, or you'll leave empty handed. There were names as well."

"Only four names."

"What will you do about them?"

"That's confidential." Severus sighed but decided to continue.

"Make sure you check the books from the library as well; they have information on the Dark Lord's allies abroad. A simple Revealing spell should be enough to get it. Also, you might want to send someone to the giants again. The Dark Lord's negotiations with them seem to be at a weak point; you might have a chance of getting them on your side."

"I'll see what I can do," Kingsley said.

"Is there anything else you need to know?"

"Where are the new headquarters?" Severus laughed aloud at the question.

"You can't honestly expect me to answer that."

"You helped us capture many Death Eaters, but not enough to give us the necessary advantage. What is it that you want to achieve?"

"You've weakened the enemy more than you think. You have some of his best men. Just make sure it stays that way."

"The attacks last night showed us that he's still powerful and dangerous, and you didn't warn us about them."

"You got all the information I could provide," he said, and noticed Kingsley's eyes narrow at the use of the first person. "The locations were chosen at the last moment for safety. Miss Granger told you there would be attacks; you were ready and able to respond fast enough, to minimize the damage."

"That's not enough, many Aurors and Order members were hurt, along with a lot of innocent witches and wizards."

"Then you will have to be more careful. Our information may not be enough, but it is all you will get."

"I just wonder who will take the blame next time."

"Excuse me?"

"Mulciber. You killed him to protect yourself."

"I did what I had to do. He was a murderer; you had captured him when he was trying to kill the Order members. Why do you care about what happened to him?"

"Because you made Hermione arrange it, and now she has to live with that on her conscience."

"You have no idea what you are talking about, and you should keep her out of this."

"Looks like I'm not the only one who cares," Kingsley replied smugly.

"You are right about one thing, though."

"And what is that?"

"We have to find another way to pass information."

"Why?"

"It would be easier, and she is in enough danger as it is."

"So what do you propose?"

"Arrange an Order meeting for tomorrow night."

"What for?"

"You will have to wait to find out. Just do as I ask."

"I won't let you or your friend into our headquarters."

"There will be no need; Miss Granger will take care of everything."

"Who are you?" Kingsley asked again.

"You will find out soon enough," he said, and easily blocked a spell suddenly sent his way by the Auror, trying to get Severus' mask off.

"You should know better than to attack a Death Eater," he said as he shot back, and after a few more spells and curses shot both ways, the Auror fell to the floor.

"Consider this proof of my intentions," Severus said as he lowered his wand and stepped back. "Next time you try to attack me, you won't be so lucky."

Kingsley got up in silence, and made his way to the door.

"If you betray us, or harm Hermione in any way, I will kill you," he said as he opened the door. Without another word, he stepped outside and Apparated away.

Reaching inside his robe, he took out a small roll of parchment and walked to the table.

'Are you there?' he wrote.

'Yes. What happened with Kingsley?'

'That's not important right now. Remember the bottle I gave you the other day?'

'Yes,' she answered after a few moments.

'It's time to use it. Get everything you will need, it has to be ready for tomorrow night.'

'Tomorrow?'

'There will be an Order meeting.'

'What do you want me to do with it?'

'Let everyone see it.'

'Are you sure?'

'Yes. Just one thing.'

'What?'

'Whatever they say, or ask, don't tell them you knew it was mine. Tell them you were working with someone else, that you didn't know I was involved.'

'Why?'

'I will explain soon, but for now just do what I ask.'

'What does Kingsley know?"

'Nothing important, keep it that way. Good night.'

'Good night,' she wrote back after a few moments.

He rolled the parchment again and put it away, before leaving the cabin and Apparating to his house. He had a lot to do.


	27. memories

"Have you taken the potion yet?" she whispered to Harry for the second time. He was sitting in the library with Ginny on his lap. Ever since he'd first taken Snape's potion they spent all day together, and as much as she loved them both, it was starting to drive her crazy.

"What?" he asked distractedly, still stroking Ginny's hair.

"The potion," she repeated. "I gave it to you days ago; you were supposed to take it."

"I'll take it tonight," he said, and turned to kiss Ginny's neck.

"Oh no, you won't," she said, taking his arm and pulling him up, almost landing Ginny on the floor. Groaning loudly, he finally followed Hermione up the stairs.

"You have no idea how hard it was to get the potion," she whispered hastily as she dragged him to his room. "It could help us find the missing Horcruxes, what do I have to do to make you understand?"

"You think I don't know that? I'd just like to enjoy my life a little, every once in a while," he huffed.

"Where is it?" she asked, as they walked inside his bedroom. Instead of answering, Harry walked to his trunk, reached inside, and pulled out a small wooden box. He opened it, took the bottle, and then moved back to where she was standing.

"Good. Now sit down, clear your mind, and then focus on the Horcruxes," she said bossily. "I'll be waiting outside."

It took him almost half an hour to walk back out of the room, and she noticed he looked a bit pale.

"What did you see?" she asked eagerly.

"Nothing important," he said. With a loud sigh, she took him by the arm again and pulled him to her room.

"What are you doing here?" he asked, frowning.

"Lock the door," she just said, as she walked to her wardrobe. She opened the door, muttered a few words, and with a flick of her wand a small Pensieve appeared.

"Where did you get that?" Harry asked, moving to her side to get a better look.

"I bought it a few days ago in Diagon Alley," she answered. "It was unbelievably hard to find."

"But what do you need it for?"

"Well, I thought we could use it to go over your visions, maybe see if there's something important you missed or forgot."

"I don't want to go through it again," he frowned and she sighed, slightly exasperated.

"Just focus on the memory, flick your wand like this," she instructed, showing him the movements with her own wand, "and then just pull the memory out. You've seen it done before."

It took a few attempts, but finally they saw the memory swirling in the Pensieve.

"Ready?" she asked, placing the basin on the desk and motioning for Harry to walk closer. Looking a bit hesitant, he finally moved to her side and they both leaned forward, touching the smoky liquid and being pulled inside the Pensieve.

It was like watching a movie, only the images were moving too fast. First, she saw a crying baby, then a little boy sobbing in his bed at night, saw him alone in a park, left out by the other children. As the images changed the boy looked older, dressed in second -hand Slytherin robes. She saw him in class, being praised by teachers and reading his grades proudly. A Prefect's badge was pinned to his robes next, and then a Head Boy's one.

The images were moving so fast she was starting to feel dizzy, but after a few more flashes they seemed to slow down, and she found herself standing in a dark and deserted corridor, in Hogwarts. A massive figure walked past her, soon followed by the boy, and she ran after them.

As she stepped into a room, she saw the boy pointing his wand at the figure and speaking, but she couldn't hear what he was saying. The figure turned around to face him, and she gasped as she realized it was a much younger Hagrid, shock evident on his face as he moved slightly to the side, trying to hide something. Clearly noticing it, the boy shot a curse behind him, and she saw Hagrid jump and then something big and hairy hurriedly walk past her and out of the room, followed by another stream of curses.

The images started moving faster again. She saw the boy sitting in the Headmaster's office, a calm look on his handsome face, and then standing in front of Hagrid as Ministry workers broke his wand. The next second she was blinded by light and felt a tug around her waist, pulling her back.

The room started spinning again, as it changed in front of her eyes, and when it finally stopped, she found herself in what seemed to be a Slytherin bedroom. The boy she had seen before was now sitting behind a desk, a quill in his hand and a diary in front of him. He was handsome, but the smirk on his face was terrifying.

Clearly pleased with what he had written, he took a knife from a drawer and cut along his hand. She heard him mumble then, his eyes closed as the blood fell on the diary. She could feel his power, the dark magic filling the room, as his chanting grew louder, the blood vanishing the second it touched the paper.

Finally, blue smoke covered the diary and the boy opened his eyes again, the smirk on his face growing wider as he healed the cut on his hand and stood up. "It's time," he said, and slowly took the small book, closed it and put it in his pocket as he walked out of the bedroom.

She closed her eyes as felt the room around her change again, and when she opened them again she was standing in front of a large house. Looking around, she noticed Harry standing a few feet away, his eyes locked on the entrance.

The boy walked past her again, and with a flick of his wand the door was blown open and he stepped inside. She hurriedly followed him, wanting to see what would happen, but regretted it the second she reached him. The few moments it took her to get inside were enough for the boy to kill two people, a man and a woman, who were lying on the floor a few feet away. There was still another man in the room, one she noticed look a lot like the boy.

"Who are you? What did you do to them?" the man asked terrified, his eyes darting from the boy to the couple on the floor.

"Don't know your own blood? Why am I not surprised?" he mocked, and laughed aloud at the man's expression. "Good bye, father," the boy said calmly, before muttering, "Avada Kedavra."

As soon as the third body hit the floor, she watched him reach inside his robes and pull the diary out. He carefully placed it on the floor, right next to his dead father, and pointed his wand at it. A buzzing sound filled the room, and she couldn't hear what he was saying, but she could see rays of black light go from his wand to the diary as the whole room began to shake.

Everything changed around her once more, and she heard a door open behind her. She turned around to find the boy, much older and looking a lot like the Voldemort she knew, sitting in an armchair, looking down at a bowing Lucius Malfoy.

"You wanted to see me, Master?"

"I did. I have something for you, Lucius," he said, and took the small diary from his pocket.

"What is it, My Lord?"

"Have you ever heard of the Chamber of Secrets?" he asked, smirking, and then everything went black again.

"Ginny!" she heard Harry mutter. "Ginny! Don't be dead! Please don't be dead!"

It took a few seconds for her eyes to adjust to the light, and when they did, she saw Ginny lying on the floor, and Harry kneeling next to her. They were much younger. She looked around and gasped when she saw the older Harry standing next to her, his eyes locked on the two figures on the floor.

"Harry?" she asked softly, reaching for his arm, but he wouldn't look at her.

"Ginny, please wake up," the younger Harry pleaded desperately, shaking her.

"She won't wake," a soft voice said from behind them.

"Tom – Tom Riddle?" he asked, and the boy nodded.

She felt Harry move next to her and turned to him.

"We have to go," he said, his voice barely a whisper. He took her arm firmly and she felt herself rising into the air as the stone chamber evaporated around her.

When her feet finally hit the floor, she turned to look at a very pale Harry, who refused to look at her.

"What was that?" she asked, but he didn't answer. "You told me you had seen the diary the last time you took the potion."

"I did."

"Then what happened? Why was that memory in the Pensieve?"

"I don't know," he said softly and walked to the window.

"What did you see today?" she asked.

"The ring; Slytherin's ring."

"The one Dumbledore destroyed?"

"Yes."

"Maybe we should try again," she said softly, but he just shook his head. They stayed in silence for a few moments, and then heard loud voices coming from downstairs.

"What's that?" Harry asked worriedly, and opened the door.

"That's Ron!" she said, and ran down the stairs.

She stopped a few feet away, looking at the boy as he slowly walked, surrounded by Order members. After a few moments, she moved again, standing right in front of him.

"Hi," he said, with a shy smile, and instead of answering, she threw her arms around him, hugging him for a moment before she took a step back and looked at his flushed face.

"How are you?" she asked then.

"I'm still a little dizzy, and it's hard to walk, but the Healers said I would be alright," he said, and shrugged.

"You know it was a stupid thing to do, right? Jumping in front of a curse like you did. You could've gotten yourself killed," she said, and hugged him again. "Thank you," she whispered, before pulling away.

"Ron," Harry said, from the stairs. "Good to have you home. How are you feeling, mate?"

"I've been better," he said with a small smile.

"Time to go get some rest now," Molly interrupted, as he helped her son walk to the stairs. "You know what the Healer said; you have to stay in bed today," she said, and dragged a groaning Ron up the stairs and into his bedroom.

"Harry," Hermione said, then, turning to her friend.

"Not now, Hermione. Let's talk about it tomorrow, alright?" he said, and left before she could answer.

The rest of the day went by in a blur, and before she knew it, it was time to take Kingsley to meet Snape.

He was worried about the meeting, not sure if he could trust a Death Eater in any way, but he trusted her, he said; that was the only reason he was there.

That night, a few hours after she left Kingsley, Snape finally contacted her, but didn't say much. He just asked her to have the bottle he'd given her ready for a meeting the next night. She remembered the bottle, the silvery mist from the memory as it swirled around, and went to bed wondering what it could be about, and hoping it was nothing about the two of them, nothing that would give away their 'relationship'.

Kingsley had asked the Order to meet him at headquarters the next afternoon, and was the first to arrive, walking to where she was as soon as he got there.

"You told me the Death Eater you'd been working with would meet me last night," he hissed as he dragged her to an empty room.

"That's what he told me," she said, not sure just how much Snape had told him.

"Well, that shows you just how much you can trust them," he said, but seemed to calm down. "He asked me to arrange this meeting, told me you'd know what to do. I guess you know more about it than I do."

"I have something he wants everyone to see," she said calmly.

"What is it?"

"A memory."

"A memory? About what?"

"I don't know; I haven't seen it yet."

"I'm guessing you already have a Pensieve we could use," he said, and she just nodded.

"Alright," he sighed. "Everyone should be here soon. Why don't you take the Pensieve to the library?"

"Do your friends know about this?" he asked as she reached the door, and she shook her head no.

"Get everything ready, and let me explain things to them."

"What will you tell them?"

"I don't know, I'll think of something," he said, and smiled reassuringly.

Thinking about all the things that could possibly go wrong, she slowly walked up the stairs, and into her bedroom, to retrieve everything they would need.

The room fell silent as she walked to the table, the Pensieve in her hands. She could feel everyone's eyes on her as she moved to the centre of the room, and after leaving the basin on the table; she took a deep breath and turned around to face them. She wasn't sure how much Kingsley had told them already, so she just looked at the Auror and waited for him to speak.

"I asked Hermione to lend us her Pensieve for this meeting. I have something to show you." She was glad everyone's attention was now on Kingsley. She had explained the Auror what Snape had given her, claiming she didn't know what she was about, which was true.

"What is it?" someone ask from the doorway.

"I'm afraid I'm not entirely sure, we will have to wait to find out," he said, looking back at Hermione and nodding. She reached inside her pocket and took the small bottle Snape had given her.

"A memory?" Harry asked, and she nodded.

"Who is it from?" Ron asked then, and instead of answering, she turned back to Kingsley.

"It's from the one that's been passing information lately," he said, his eyes glued to hers. She could feel everyone looking at her again.

"Hermione?" Molly asked, confused.

"Why don't we just watch this first, and ask the questions later," Moody suggested, and everyone seemed to agree.

She carefully poured the memory into the Pensieve, afraid of what she would see, and what the Order's reaction would be.

"Alright everyone," Moody commanded, taking charge, "step closer." He waited until everyone was around the Pensieve, and then muttered, "This won't do." He took out his wand, enlarged the basin, and then asked everyone to touch the swirling memory.

The room soon vanished around her, and as her feet touched the ground she found herself, along with the rest of the Order, in Dumbledore's office.

"Oh, Albus," she heard McGonagall whisper, but was interrupted by Dumbledore's familiar voice.

"Severus," the Headmaster said as the door creaked open, and everyone turned around to watch him, surprised. "What can I do for you, my boy?"

"I had a strange visit last night," he said, as he walked in and sat in front of Dumbledore. "Narcissa Malfoy and her sister."

She saw the Headmaster's eyes narrow, but instead of asking, he just waited for Snape to continue.

"She was worried about Draco. She believes the Dark Lord ordered him to kill you to punish her family for Lucius' failure. She asked me to make an Unbreakable Vow."

"And what were the terms?"

"I am to watch over Draco, protect him and carry out the deed he was asked to perform, if necessary," he answered, knowing full well what that meant.

The room fell silent; Dumbledore looked lost in thought as Snape watched him intently.

"We will stick to what we had planned for now. Look after Draco and make sure he tells you what he is planning. We will decide what to do when the time comes."

"Very well," Snape said as he got up.

The room swirled around them for a few seconds, and then stopped again. She watched Snape walk inside the room once more, and then Dumbledore close a small cabinet and turn to him. Now he looked much older and fragile, and she guessed this memory was much more recent, not long before he died.

"The Dark Lord is getting anxious; he's asked Draco to meet him tonight. I've talked to the boy again this morning, but he still refuses to tell me what he's planning. I can't see it in his mind, either; Lucius must have taught him Occlumency before being sent to Azkaban."

"Make sure Voldemort doesn't harm him, Severus." Snape frowned but said nothing.

The memory changed again. This time, they were in Snape's office, and Dumbledore walked in.

"Is it ready?" he asked, wincing as he moved, and Snape quickly stood up and walked to a cauldron by the wall.

"You shouldn't have walked all the way here, I could have taken it to your rooms," he said, as he poured some purple liquid into a glass and handed it to the Headmaster, who drank it fast. After just a few moments, he sighed in relief and sat at the desk, in front of Snape.

"Whatever it is, it's going to happen soon," Snape said, and Dumbledore nodded.

"When the time comes, I want you to keep your vow," he said solemnly.

"What? I cannot do that! It would mean I would have to kill you! Surely there must be another way."

"I am already dying, my boy," he said with a sad smile, and Snape, along with everyone else in the room, gasped loudly when Dumbledore lifted his right arm, pulled up the sleeve and lifted the Glamour he had been using.

She remembered Harry telling her his hand was hurt, and she had noticed it looked blackened, but it was nothing compared to what she now saw. The entire arm looked burn almost to the bone, and even though she could only see it from hand to elbow, she was sure the rest of it looked just as bad.

"What happened to you?" Snape asked, alarmed, as he got up again. "I have some potions here that could help you," he mumbled, almost to himself as he searched the shelves, but Dumbledore stopped him.

"You can't help me, Severus," he said calmly as he covered his arm once more. "I had been weakened during my fight with Voldemort at the Ministry last year, and not long ago was exposed to a very dark and powerful curse," he explained, and she noticed his burned fingers inch to touch the ring he had moved to his other hand.

"There has to be something I can do to help you," he insisted.

"You have already helped me more than you know. The potions you brewed for me, along with some ancient spells, have kept me alive when this curse should have killed me long ago. I'm not as strong as I once was. I don't know how much time I still have."

Snape looked shocked, as if he couldn't believe what he was hearing, but before he could say anything Dumbledore stopped him.

"You are too important for the Order, we need the information only you can provide, need someone from our side among Voldemort's inner circle." He opened his mouth to answer, but just then, the room swirled again.

"Severus," Dumbledore's voice pleaded, as the room came into focus.

The Headmaster was slumped against the wall, surrounded by five Death Eaters, Snape amongst them. The Death Eaters stepped back as Snape moved closer to Dumbledore, pushing Draco to the side.

"Severus… please…" he said, but then they heard his voice again, just a faint whisper no one else seemed to hear. 'Severus, you have to do this. We need you as a spy.'

With hatred etched in the lines of his face, he raised his wand and pointed it directly at Dumbledore.

'Take care of Harry, help him defeat Voldemort,' the soft voice spoke before a jet of green light shot from the end Snape's wand and hit Dumbledore square in the chest.

"Albus," McGonagall cried as everything turned black, and then they were back at headquarters, standing by the Pensieve.

Complete silence filled the room for what felt like hours, as they stood there, without moving a muscle, their minds going through everything they had seen.

"Snape?" Harry yelled at her, and everyone turned to face her, some looking sad, others confused, and a few of them angry. "I cannot believe you've been working with Snape all this time! How could you do it?"

"I wasn't working with him, Harry. I didn't even know what the memory was about." She said, trying to calm him.

"And who have you been working with, then?" Ron asked. Everyone else remained silent, just listening to them.

"I can't," she whispered and bit her lip, and she could see the rage in both Harry and Ron's faces. Just then, Kingsley thankfully interrupted.

"Can you contact Snape?" he asked.

"Not directly, but yes," she said, feeling everyone's eyes on her again. She hated the feeling.

"Ask him to meet us," he said, and before he could finish, someone yelled "Here? You can't let him in here!" and many other voices agreed.

"No, not here. Ask him to meet me at Grimmauld Place."

"I want to go too," Harry said.

"And me," Ron told him, as did many other members.

"Hermione?" Kingsley finally said.

"Give me a few minutes," she said, before walking to the door and Apparating away.


	28. back

"What are you doing here?" Snape asked as soon as she walked into his house.

"Why didn't you tell me?"

"Tell you what?" he asked, standing up and walking closer to her.

"What really happened with Dumbledore."

"So you have already seen the memories," he said.

"Why didn't you tell me?" she repeated.

"You never asked," he answered simply.

"Would you have told me, if I had?" she asked, and he just shook his head.

"So what did they say?" he asked her then, wanting to change the subject.

"They want you to meet them at Grimmauld Place."

"Why there?"

"Some of the members didn't want to let you in our new headquarters."

"And what did they tell you about what they saw in the memories?"

"Harry was furious," she said, laughing bitterly. "I told him it wasn't you I'd been meeting all this time."

"And did he believe you?"

"I don't know. Why did you want me to tell them that?" she finally asked.

"Now they've seen the memories and know it's me, there's a chance I can get back to the Order, but if they refuse, if they still don't believe me, then it would appear you had betrayed them."

"You are worried about what they think of me?" she asked, amused.

"If that happened, how would I pass information to the Order?" he asked matter-of-factly.

"Oh," she muttered, and looked away.

"And what did the others say?"

"Most of them were too shocked to say anything. It was Kingsley's idea to ask you to meet them at Grimmauld Place.

"He must have been surprised at what he saw."

"I guess, but he didn't show it. And he helped me with Harry and Ron too, they were so mad."

"So he helped you, did he? That was very nice of him," he said, stepping closer to her.

"Well, yes, it was," she muttered confused.

"What's with you and Kingsley?" he finally asked, slowly walking her back against the wall.

"What do you mean?"

"Well, he seemed quite protective last night, every time your name was mentioned. And I noticed the way he looks at you," he whispered, his hand cupping her face, and a finger tracing her lower lip, "the way he talks to you."

"Jealous?" she asked, with a sly smile.

"Cheeky witch," he muttered, and kissed her hungrily. His hands roamed her body as he pushed her against the wall, making her moan.

"We should get going," he muttered breathlessly after a few moments, and stepped back.

"They can wait," she breathed, and tried to pull him closer again, but he just took another step back.

"Kingsley wouldn't be happy," he said, turning away from her and moving to the door, and she sighed, but before he could say anything else, he felt the Dark Mark on his arm burn.

"He's calling me. Wait here, it won't take long," he told her, just as he hurriedly stepped out of the house and Apparated to their headquarters.

He was surprised to find so many Death Eaters there, but he just searched the place, looking for his Master.

"Severus," Voldemort muttered as he walked in, and then turned back to Bellatrix. He waited patiently for a few moments, until his Master was done with the witch.

"Follow me," he ordered, and walked into an empty room.

"Any news from your witch?" he asked as soon as the door was closed and warded.

"I was with her. I am to meet some Order members."

"Why?"

"She has been talking to them. There is a chance I can join the Order again," he said, noticing his Master's eyes brighten.

"That would be very good. How will you explain Dumbledore's death?"

"I told her Dumbledore had it all planed, but didn't go into any detail. Having known the manipulative fool, they probably wouldn't put it past him."

"Good. When are you meeting them?"

"I was about to go there when you called me, Master."

"Do you know where their new headquarters are?"

"No. We are meeting somewhere else."

"I need them to take the Death Eaters they captured to Azkaban."

"I already tried it once, Master, and they refused. I don't think they will do it now either."

"The Dementors are finally joining us, and they will release all the prisoners before they do so. I want my men there when it happens."

"I'll see what I can do."

"I want you to spy on them again, Severus. I don't trust the witch and don't want her involved in this. Make sure they take you back."

"I will have to give them something, Master."

"Tell them about Diggins spying for us in the Department of Games and Sports. He doesn't know anything important about us, and his information lately has been useless."

"Anything else, Master?"

"No. Go now, and come back when you are done. I want to know what they tell you."

"Yes, Master," he said, bowing, before leaving again.

"What happened?" she asked worriedly as soon as he walked back inside his house.

"He just wanted news from the Order, to know what they are planning."

"And what did you tell him?"

"What I tell him every time, Miss Granger; nothing important," he said curtly.

"The others are waiting," she muttered, clearly upset by his tone, and walked out of the house.

"You are right, let's go," he said, following her, taking her hand, and Apparating them both to Grimmauld Place.

He opened the door and waited for Hermione to walk inside before following her. The room fell silent the moment they stepped in, and everybody turned to face them. He took a moment to look at the members present before sitting at the empty side of the table, in front of everyone else. He was sure they had decided on the sitting arrangement to make him feel uncomfortable, but they were just wasting their time.

He leaned back on his chair comfortably and raised an eyebrow, waiting for them to talk.

"You wanted to see me?" he asked calmly after a few moments.

"You bastard," Harry hissed, and looked at him hatefully.

"We asked you to come here to explain what we saw in the memories," Kingsley said.

"I don't think it needs explaining, I believe it was quite clear."

"If what we saw was true, then why didn't you say something before?" Kingsley asked. Everyone else stayed in silence.

"None of you would have believed me. After that night, you would have tried to kill me on sight, and I would regret being forced to kill you," he said, the last part with a sneer.

"Then why do you want to come back now? Are you already tired of torturing and killing innocent people?" Harry asked angrily.

"You certainly didn't seem to mind having me around the other night at Diagon Alley, when Bellatrix Lestrange was about to kill you, Potter. But then again, you were probably too preoccupied with hiding and gaping at her to notice much."

"It was you?" he asked, looking surprised.

"You said you had questions about what you saw," he said in a bored tone, turning to Kingsley.

"Why now? Why try to contact us now?"

"Because you clearly need the information I can provide. I helped you capture many dangerous Death Eaters in the last weeks, after all."

"So it was you? Yu were the one working with Hermione?" Ron asked, horrified, turning to his friend and looking at her accusingly. "How could you do this?" he asked her.

"I wasn't working with Miss Granger, Mister Weasley," he said before Hermione could answer. "We were simply both working with the same person."

"Who?"

"You still need to learn to mind your own business, Mister Weasley. The person we have been working with wishes to remain anonymous."

"You are just a traitor, this is all a lie. What you showed us was a lie."

"I happen to know, Potter that you have seen more stored memories than you should have. As incompetent as you might be, I'm sure you can at least recognize a memory that has been tampered with. Everything you saw was true."

"I don't care what you say, Snape. You are a traitor and a murderer. And you," he yelled, turning to Hermione, "I can't believe you. He is the reason my parents are dead, the reason Sirius is dead, and he even killed Dumbledore himself. What on earth were you thinking?!" with that, he got up and strode to the door, glaring at everyone on his way. Before he had even reached the door, Ron was already up behind him, and with a sigh, Hermione followed both her friends out.

"Would you mind leaving us for a few moments?" Kingsley asked the remaining members, and with a little fussing, they walked out as well.

"So you were the one I met last night," the Auror asked him calmly, after warding the room and Severus simply nodded.

"Were the memories real?"

"Yes."

"What had happened to Dumbledore, why was he dying?"

"You saw the memories; I won't say anything else about it."

"So you were at Diagon Alley during the attack?" Kingsley asked then.

"Just for a few minutes."

"You saved Harry from Bellatrix, and you were the one that sent Ron to St. Mungo's when he was injured," he said, and Severus just nodded again.

"That means Hermione knew who you were. And she lied to us to protect you."

"She didn't know who I was," he lied quickly, surprised by the question.

"All this time, someone as intelligent as her, and you say she didn't know? I'm not sure I can believe that," he said sceptically.

"You can believe anything you like, I honestly don't care, and that's not what I'm here for."

"And what are you here for?"

"Like you said last night, it would probably be better if we kept Miss Granger out of this. If I could pass the information directly to the Order it would make things much easier."

"And your friend?"

"What about him?"

"If you joined the Order again, he could do the same."

"That will not be necessary."

"So what happens now?" Kingsley asked.

"I have to go to the Dark Lord, tell him I got back into the Order, and then it will be like before all of this happened."

"This doesn't mean we trust you."

"You didn't trust me before either, and I don't need your trust. We want the same things, even if it is for different reasons; we just have to work together."

"Harry will be a problem."

"He always is," he simply answered, as he stood up.

"I will talk to the others, but if they don't want you back, there's not much I can do."

"I am sure you will be able to convince them, especially if you are as concerned for Miss Granger's safety as you seem to be. Working with spies can be very dangerous," he said, as he walked to the door.

"Oh, before I forget," he said, turning back to Kingsley for a moment. "Do you know Diggins, from the Department of Games and Sports?

"Yes."

"He's spying for us," he finished, and then turned back and opened the door.

As he stepped out of the room, he saw Ron, Harry and Hermione whispering heatedly in one corner of the library; the rest of the Order members were just standing by the entrance, talking to each other and seemingly waiting for him to walk out.

They all fell silent the moment they noticed him, some looking curious, others angry, but he couldn't care less. He needed to talk to Hermione again, but he knew that was probably not the best time, so he simply walked past them with one of his famous sneers and left, without even saying good night.

"Severus, you didn't take long. What happened?" his Master asked as soon as he saw him.

"Maybe we should discuss this in private," he suggested, looking at Bellatrix, sitting nearby and looking at them.

"Nonsense," Voldemort answered dismissively. "I want to know what happened."

"I told them what I had told the girl, and then about Diggins too. They want some time to discuss it, and to make sure the information I gave them is real. Some of them are a bit reluctant, but I think they can be convinced."

"So when will you know?"

"We arranged another meeting in a week."

"Then the break out from Azkaban will have to wait. Stay in touch with the witch, ask her to tell you what they discuss and decide, before the week is over."

"Yes, Master."

"Go now, I have important attacks to plan."


	29. fights

"I don't care what you say, Snape. You are a traitor and a murderer. And you," he yelled, turning to Hermione, "I can't believe you. He is the reason my parents are dead, the reason Sirius is dead, and he even killed Dumbledore himself. What on earth were you thinking?!" and with that, he got up and strode to the door, glaring at everyone on his way, and closely followed by Ron.

"Harry, wait," she said, but the boy wouldn't listen, so she sighed and followed him out of the room.

"Harry," she repeated as she reached them. "Harry, wait, it's not what you think."

"What is it then?" he asked angrily, finally turning to face her. "You were working with him, helping him. You've been lying to us all this time."

"That's not what," she said, but stopped when she heard a door open again, and the rest of the Order walked out of the room. "Come," she whispered, pleadingly, and dragged Harry into the library, to an empty corner, and out of earshot.

"I was just trying to help you, Harry. I didn't know it was him," she said. She didn't want to lie anymore, but still was glad Snape had asked her not to tell anyone the truth. It would be too much for her friends.

"There are other ways to help, Hermione. There was no need for this. He's a Death Eater!"

"And just where did you think all the information was coming from? He helps us more than you can think, risking his life for us."

"Help us? What did he ever do to help us?" he asked, and she could tell he was trying hard to keep his voice down.

"What do you think happened when the Death Eaters attacked Grimmauld Place? Who do you think warned us about what they were planning? The raid to their headquarters? They even warned us about the attacks to Wizarding and Muggle towns the other day. He has been risking his life to help you, to help us all. You've seen the memories, Harry; you've seen what really happened. He was forced to do what he did, and still decided to come back to the order."

"Are you even listening to yourself? This is Snape we're talking about; the man that made our lives miserable for six years. How can you defend him?"

"I'm not. I'm just telling you to see," she hissed, but stopped when she heard the door open once more. They all turned to see Snape walk out and head for the door. Their eyes locked for a moment, and she wanted to go to him, to ask him what had happened, what Kingsley had said, but knew it wouldn't be wise, so she just watched him sneer and leave without a word.

"Harry," she finally sighed as she turned to face him again, "you have to give him a chance."

"Did you know he was the one passing the information?" he asked, much calmer now.

"No," she whispered.

"Who were you meeting all this time?"

"I can't tell you that, Harry; I'm sorry."

"Why do you think you can trust them?"

"He's saved my life, Harry; more than once. They've saved many others as well. Snape saved you when Bellatrix was about to kill you, and if they hadn't helped me get Ron to St. Mungo's"

"What?" Ron asked. He had been listening to them in silence until then, but was too surprised not to ask. "What do you mean helped you get me there?"

She sighed deeply before answering. "That night, you were hit by the curse, and were unconscious. I wasn't even sure you were still alive. I tried to carry you away from the battle, but couldn't, and there was no one there to help me. Then he showed up and made a Portkey, sending you to St. Mungo's."

"You said an Auror had done it," Harry said, and she could tell he was still upset.

"I know; I couldn't tell them the truth."

"I can't believe you've been lying to us all this time."

"I did what I thought was best. You had enough on your mind already; I didn't want you to worry."

"What do you expect me to do?" he asked then. "Snape and I have hated each other for years; I just can't forget that."

"I'm not asking you to like him, Harry," she said, taking his hand. "I just hope you will give him a chance. He could help us defeat Voldemort; we need him."

"Ready to go back?" Kingsley's voice interrupted them. She looked around then, and noticed the other Order members were already gone.

"Yes, Mom will be worried," Ron answered, and they all walked to the door.

As they stepped out of the house, she felt Kingsley's hand on her arm, holding her back.

"Just go ahead," he told Harry and Ron. "We'll join you in a moment."

"Why didn't you tell me?" he asked, as soon as the boys left, turning to face her.

"Tell you what?"

"That Snape was the one helping us," he said, and she noticed his fingers were still wrapped around her wrist.

"I didn't know it was him."

"Then who was it you've been working with?"

"We've been through this already," she sighed. "I won't tell you."

"Why not?"

"He doesn't want you to know."

"Snape will be passing the information directly to me, from now on."

"What?" she asked, surprised.

"They don't want you involved. And I have to admit I'm glad; it's a dangerous game you've been playing."

"I'm not a child, Kingsley," she said, angry, and pulled free of his grasp. "I've been fighting this war since I started Hogwarts; I've been with Harry every step of the way. It's always dangerous, and I don't care. I'll do anything in my power to help him."

"If someone found out you've been working with Death Eaters, you would be considered a traitor; they would send you to Azkaban."

"You would tell the Ministry?" she asked, shocked.

"Of course not, but I'm not the only one who knows. You have to be careful, and stay away from them."

"Why do you care so much?" she asked, remembering what Snape had told her earlier, wondering if it could be true.

"I care because you are part of the Order," he answered, taken aback by the question. "We have to take care of each other, if we want to win."

"I appreciate it, I really do," she said, "but I can take care of myself."

"Just be careful," he muttered, and Apparated away.

She took a deep breath, confused at what had happened, and then Apparated to headquarters, surprised to see no one was up.

The next day, she woke up to find the house almost empty.

"Where's everyone?" she asked Molly, as she found her humming in the kitchen.

"They went back to Grimmauld Place. They wanted to discuss what happened yesterday."

"Why didn't anyone wake me up? Why didn't they tell me?"

"They wanted to talk about it without you there. Now don't get upset," she quickly added, sensing Hermione's anger. "They just thought it would be better if you weren't there. Some of them are very angry at Snape, and knowing you had helped him…"

"Well, at least I would like the opportunity to defend myself," she huffed.

"You just have to give them time, sweetheart."

"So you believe he was telling the truth, that what we saw in the Pensieve was real?"

"Of course I do. I also know you would never do anything that would hurt any of us, especially Harry. You have to give them time to get used to the idea. He did, after all, kill Albus."

"So, why aren't you with them?" she asked.

"Someone had to stay here," she answered, and went back to cooking.

The whole day went by with just Molly and her in the house. She was already in bed when she heard the other come back, and decided not to go talk to them just yet. She wasn't sure she wanted to know what had happened.

The next day, she woke up to an empty house again. This time, she found a small note from Molly on the kitchen table, saying she had decided to join the rest of the Order that day, and asking her to stay in the house until they returned.

She stayed in the library most of the day, going through books, but not paying much attention, too busy thinking about what they might decide, wondering if they would let Snape back into the Order, or even if they would turn her in, accuse her of treason.

The sun was still up when she went to bed that day. During the last two days, she had gone from worried to mad. How could they meet to discuss Snape, and not take her with them? She was the one that had been working with him; she could tell them about all the times he had helped, everyone he had saved. No, they would rather leave her out, not telling her anything at all. It wasn't fair.

The third day, she woke up to the sound of a quill scratching paper. It took her a few seconds to realize what it was. Since the last time she had seen him, she had tried to contact Snape with the blank piece of parchment he had given her, but he hadn't responded.

'Why weren't you at the meeting today?' he questioned. She was surprised to see it was already midday.

'You went to the meeting?' she asked, shocked and hurt they would let him there, and not her.

'Of course.'

'Well, they hadn't invited me, didn't they tell you?'

'Do you know if they have decided anything?'

'I haven't even seen them in over two days. I don't know anything.'

'Try and find out soon,' he wrote.

'I've been trying to contact you for two days.'

'The Dark Lord has kept me busy. I have to go now. Just talk to them and let me know what they decide.'

'Wait. What did they tell you?' she asked, but he didn't answer. He was already gone.

Still in an awful mood, she walked down the stairs to what seemed like an empty house again, only this time she found someone in the kitchen.

"Good morning," Remus said, as she walked in.

"Hi," she said, and sat next to him at the table. "Why aren't you with the others?"

"I have already made my decision, and they know it. There's no need for me to spend more time discussing this. Besides, I thought you would like some company," he said, smiling warmly.

"You were right. I'm tired of being here alone, not knowing what's going on."

"It will be over soon, and hopefully, everything will go back to normal. Tea?" he asked, and she laughed at the change of subject.

"Thanks," she muttered, and spent the next few minutes silently sipping the warm tea.

"So, what do you think will happen?" she finally asked.

"They'll fight for a few more hours, and then decide to let Snape join the Order again."

"And you agree with that?"

"I know how much they've helped," he said after a few moments, "and I think we need him."

"And what about me?" she asked, hesitantly.

"I've worked with spies before; I know how hard it is. Some of them might suspect you, or treat you differently for a while, but they will eventually come round. Just give them some time," he said, repeating Molly's advice.

"Thank you."

"For what?" he asked.

"For being there for me, for helping me, for everything. I know you had to lie to the Order for me, and I want you to know I really appreciate it."

"I'm sure you would have done the same for me," he said, blushing slightly. "Now why don't we go out now, get some fresh air? You've been in here for days now."

"That sounds great," she said, glad she could finally get out.

They spent the day in Diagon Alley, visiting the shops, both happily spending hours in the bookstore, going through the new books. She always enjoyed spending time with Remus; they had a lot in common. After hours away, and a few drinks at the Leaky Cauldron, they finally headed back to headquarters, Hermione feeling much calmer than she had in the last few days.

Again, she went to bed before the others arrived, and right before falling asleep, she decided it was time to face them.

The next day, as soon as she woke up, she made her way to Harry and Ron's bedroom, wanting to talk about what had happened, to see if they were still upset with her.

"What are you doing?" she asked, shocked, as Ron opened the door to let her in.

"We are leaving," Harry answered from the wardrobe. She could see a few bags on the bed, with clothes inside.

"What?"

"I want to go to Godric's Hollow, to see my parents' house, just like I had planned. And then we will search for the Horcruxes."

"But, Harry."

"No buts, Hermione. I've made up my mind."

"Well, what are you waiting for?" Ron asked, and she looked at him, confused. "We are leaving tonight, get your things ready."

Surprised as she was, she couldn't help but smile; she was glad they weren't intending to leave her behind. Not that she would have stayed, but still.

"But what about the Order? What about Snape?"

"They're taking him back," Harry answered.

"Do they know you're leaving?"

"Not yet."

"But Ron, what will your mother say?"

"I've made a decision, Hermione. You don't have to join us if you don't want to, but I'm going with Harry."

"But where?" she asked, trying to reason with them. "You don't know where the Horcruxes are, or even what they are."

"We have your potion, I can use it to try and find them."

"You could do that from here, too."

"Look, Hermione. I appreciate your concern, I really do, but as Ron said, we're leaving. Now, you can either join us, or stay here, it's up to you," he said, and went back to the wardrobe.

"Of course I'll go with you, but I need some time to prepare."

"I won't wait anymore, Hermione," Harry said, sternly.

"Please, just give me one day; just one. We can all leave tomorrow night."

"I don't want to wait anymore."

"It will only be a day, Harry, please. What difference will it make?"

He sighed, but finally relented. "One day?" he asked, and she nodded. "Just one, and then you'll leave with us?" She nodded again. "Fine. But if you're not ready tomorrow night, we're leaving without you."

"Thank you, Harry," she said, and hugged him.

"Now go get your things ready," Ron said. "We al know it will take you forever, what with deciding what books you'll want to take with you and all." She smiled at him and hugged him too, before going back to her bedroom.

She tried to contact Snape again, but he didn't answer; she Apparated to his house too, but he wasn't there. After a few more attempts with the parchment, she finally gave up, and started packing.

That day, the house was finally full of people again. She noticed some of them watching her, some even throwing her murderous looks (all of them new members), but most of them behaved as usual.

She stayed up late that night, enjoying the company after days alone. All the Weasleys were there, as well as Harry, Remus, Tonks, Kingsley, Moody and a few others, even Mundungus, whom she hadn't seen in months. Once she left with Harry and Ron, she would really miss them; she just hoped the war would be over soon, so she could see them again.

That night, she twisted and turned in bed for what felt like hours, going through everything they would need when they left in her mind. Ron had been right; she had spent hours searching the library for anything that could help them in their mission, potions, spells, charms, and even a few history books.

She groaned and turned to the other side, again. No matter how much she tried, she just couldn't sleep. Careful as to not wake Ginny up, she tiptoed out of her room and down the stairs.

Thinking maybe some milk would help her fall asleep, she yawned and walked into the kitchen, stopping mid-step when she noticed she wasn't alone.

She slowly looked around the room, at the three men, Kingsley, Remus and Snape, that had fallen silent, and then back at herself, blushing furiously when she realized she was just wearing a big old T-shirt that barely covered her thighs and left one of her shoulders bare.

"I thought everyone was asleep," she muttered, and straightened her clothes as best she could. When none of them spoke, she took a few steps forward and reached for the milk and a glass, feeling their eyes on her every move.

"OK, I'll just go now," she said with a small smile, as soon as her glass was full. "Good night," she whispered as she left. After a few seconds, she heard Remus and Kingsley mutter "Good night," in return, but Snape just stayed silent.

Still feeling embarrassed, she quickly got up the stairs and into her bedroom. Well, at least, after four days, she had finally seen Snape again. She had been worried about him, after days of trying to contact him, with no response, but now she had seen he was all right, she couldn't help but feel a bit upset he hadn't even written her a note, to tell her he was fine. Tiptoeing back inside, she drank the milk left the glass on the bedside table, next to her wand, and crept into bed, finally falling asleep.

She could feel something soft tickling her skin, but she wasn't sure she was still dreaming. Then she felt something warm and wet slowly moving up her thighs, and she opened her eyes, shocked to find Snape's head between her legs.

"What are you doing?" she hissed, looking to the side to see Ginny, thankfully still asleep, but just a few feet away.

He lifted his head for a moment, smirking at her before whispering, "I thought you'd never wake up."

"What?" she asked alarmed, holding back a moan as he licked the inside of her thighs. "Ginny's here, she could wake up any minute," she hissed, and tried to push him away, but to no avail.

"Then you'll have to keep quiet," he said, smirking evilly as he continued his ministrations.

"No," she protested, and shook her head, but at the same time spread her legs further apart; she heard him chuckle, and was about to protest again when he thrust his fingers inside of her. Her back arched, and she bit her arm to stifle a groan, her other hand slowly inching closer to her wand, thinking maybe she could cast a silencing spell around them.

She gasped when his free hand wrapped around her wrist, moving her arm away from the bedside table and then pushing the wand to the floor. "Where would be the fun in that?" he whispered.

"Git," she muttered then, but stopped trying to push him away, instead enjoying the feel of his fingers, his lips and his tongue. It only took him a few minutes to take her to heaven, every touch sending her closer and closer to the edge.

Her body responded to him in a way she never thought possible, and she wondered for a moment if she would ever grow tired of it, but the next second every coherent thought, except that of keeping silent, escaped her mind, as her body convulsed around his fingers in pleasure.

He kept moving his fingers inside of her, flicking his tongue over her clit, until she came back down, and then he kissed and nibbled his way up her body, until his face was level with hers.

"If I'd known you'd taken to walking around headquarters dressed like this," he whispered, smirking, his eyes flicking to the old T-shirt she was still wearing, "then I would have joined the Order again much sooner." Then he kissed her hungrily, grinding his hips against hers.

"What on earth are you doing here?" she hissed, as soon as he broke the kiss. "If she woke up and saw you there…" When instead of answering, he simply smirked; a wicked idea crossed her mind.

"You think it's funny, don't you?" she asked, bending her legs at the knee and slowly moving her feel closer to her hips. Before he could answer, she pushed her hips up, and flipped them over, so that she was now straddling him.

Without giving him time to react, she kissed him again, her hands easily undoing his slacks. She moved her lips to his neck, after a few moments, and then down his chest. She pushed him back when he tried to sit, a warning look on her face, soon replaced by a mischievous one.

She pushed his shirt up, her lips and tongue playing down his chest and hips as she pushed his trousers and underwear down his legs.

"Still think this is funny?" she asked, a determined look on her face as she wrapped her fingers around his rock hard erection, hearing him stifle a moan. She moved her head lower and slowly ran her tongue along his length, before taking him in her mouth, smiling to herself when she felt him arch.

Using both her lips, her tongue and her hands, repeating any motion he seemed to like, soon she had him thrusting his hips up, his hands on her hair, pushing her down at the same time, but being careful not to choke her. She ran her nails up and down his thighs, making him groan louder, the witch sleeping on the next bed completely forgotten to her, but apparently not to him.

"Stop," he breathed, and finally pushed her back, gasping. She watched him look around the room, before muttering, "not here."

In less than a second, he had pulled her out of bed, and with a flick of his wand, they were both dressed. He took her hand and hurriedly walked out of the bedroom, down the stairs, and towards the entrance.

As soon as they stepped out of the house, he pushed her hard against the wall, kissing her deeply and lifting her up, making her wrap her legs around him as he Apparated them both away. Another second and he opened the door to his house and walked inside, still carrying her.

"Too far away," he muttered to himself, as he faced the stairs, and then kissed her again, turned around and headed for the library, barely making it to the couch. He threw her on it and reached for his wand, making their clothes vanish before joining her there.

Before she knew it, he was inside her, moving deliciously as he kissed her again. She felt his hands on her legs, pushing them up his shoulders, and she moaned loudly as the angle changed, sending him much deeper inside of her.

He broke the kiss when the need for air became overwhelming, and he locked eyes with her, his thrusts slowing. She bit her lip as her back arched, but couldn't take her eyes off his. She could see something different in them, but she didn't know what it was.

He moved one of hands between them, his fingers rubbing her clit as his thrusts became faster and harder again, never breaking eye contact, and soon she was coming again, her muscles contracting around him and sending him over the edge with her.

He rode her orgasm, kissing her again as their bodies moved as one, and only when they had both calmed down did he lower her legs again and roll to lie next to her. She took a few moments to recover, and then started to get up, knowing she'd be in a world of trouble if Ginny woke up and noticed she was gone, and wanting to save Snape the trouble of thinking of an excuse to get her out of there.

"Where do you think you are going?" he asked, and she turned around, confused, but as she started to speak, he interrupted. "I'm not done with you yet," he said, smirking, as he wrapped an arm around her waist and pulled her to him again, his lips instantly on her neck, his hand caressing its way up her thigh.


	30. the only way

It had been three days since the last meeting, when they called him again, asking him to go to Grimmauld Place. They had sent a note to his house at Spinner's End, and he wondered who knew where he lived.

As he arrived to their former headquarters, he opened the door to find just about every Order member, some of them he didn't even know himself, waiting for him. They had placed a large table in the middle of the library, and had left one of the ends empty for him to sit.

"Please, sit," said Kinsgsley as he entered. "We want to ask you a few questions."

"I thought we had discussed this already," he said, still standing and glaring around, noticing Hermione wasn't there.

"You want back in, and we want our questions answered, so why don't you sit down?" one of the new members said.

"Why should I care about what you want? I already told you more than you needed to know. The choice is up to you. You clearly haven't been in the Order long enough to know how valuable the information I can provide is, and unless you start showing some respect, young man, I'm not sure you ever will," he said, ant turned around to leave.

"Severus, please," came Minerva's voice from behind him. "There are some things we would like to discuss with you."

He looked at her for a moment. She looked much older than she had the last time he'd seen her, and there was a sad tint in her eyes that certainly hadn't been there before. If it had been anyone else's request, he would have paid them no mind, but, with a sigh, he nodded in her direction and sat down.

"What do you want to know?"

"Was it true? What we saw in the Pensieve?" she asked softly, and he nodded. "Why didn't he say anything? Why didn't you say anything?"

"He asked me to keep his secret; he had his own reasons not to want his condition known by others."

"But he should have told me, I would have found a way to help him," she whispered, almost to herself.

"I don't think this is the best time, or place, to discuss this, Minerva," he said, and she nodded. He looked at the others then, waiting for them to speak.

"How did Hermione get involved in all this?" Ron asked.

"She found herself in a dangerous situation, and was saved by our mutual friend."

"What kind of dangerous situation?" I think you should her that question, Mr Weasley.

"So you're saying you weren't working with her directly."

"We were both working with the same person, but not with each other."

"Oh, please, like a Death Eater and supposed spy would trust anyone, least of all two people."

"I already said it before," came a voice from the other end of the table. "She's been the one passing information to You Know Who, and not the other way around." A few voices agreed.

"She's been leaving headquarters on her own a lot, especially right before Death Eater's attacks."

"Alright, that's enough," Harry yelled, and everyone turned to him in surprise. "We've been discussing the same thing for two whole days already." He stood up and looked pointedly at everyone in the room.

"Hermione has not betrayed us; she never would. She's risked her life more times that I can count, to help me and everyone in the Order. She has done nothing but try to help us, always; maybe not in the best way, but that doesn't change the fact that she did what she thought she had to do. Her information helped capture many dangerous and high ranked Death Eaters, and thanks to her contact, we've been ready every time they attacked. Still, you talk about her as if she's some kind of traitor, supposedly working for someone she has fought against for the last six years, even before the war began, and a lot longer than many of you here." He took a deep breath before continuing.

"Everyone here that knows her, would never even think what you suggest is possible. If you even think of doing something to her, anything, then I can promise you, you will have me to deal with. So if anyone here wants her out of the Order, then say it now, because I'm tired of all this senseless fighting, and if she leaves, I'm leaving too," he finished, seriously.

"And me," Ron said, standing up next to her friend. In the next few moments, many others stood as well, mostly the ones that had been in the Order the last few years and knew her well. He was surprised at this, but what could he expect, he asked himself, from a bunch of Gryffindors? Well, at least they had saved him the trouble of defending her himself…

"If that is all, I will be leaving," he said, breaking the tension as he got up. "I trust the information I provided during the last meeting was useful," he said, looking at Kingsley, who nodded.

"What? What information?" some of the voices asked, but he was already on his way out.

He spent the rest of that day, and most of the next one, at headquarters with the other Death Eaters. Bellatrix Lestrange was in charge of the break out from Azkaban, and they were ordered to help her. After her husband had been captured by the Order, she had spent most of her time thinking up ways to get him out, and now, with the Dementors finally joining the Dark Lord, it seemed she finally had her chance.

She blamed Severus for what had happened to Rodolphus, claiming it had been his information that had led to the attack, during which he was captured, and so she tried to turn the Dark Lord, and every other Death Eater, against him. She did her best to blame everything that went wrong on him, trying to convince everyone that would listen, that he was a traitor, really working for the Order all this time. She had no idea how much truth her words held.

He was tired of her attacks, of her mocking, of her making fun of his relationship with "the little witch", and so when he received another message from the Order, one asking him to meet them again, he didn't even hesitate.

"Why did you want to meet here?" he asked Kingsley as he reached the door to the Leaky Cauldron.

"Follow me," the man simply said, and walked into Diagon Alley.

"Where are we going?" Severus asked, after a few minutes, knowing the answer already.

"To our new headquarters. If you are going to be a part of the Order again, you need to know where we meet."

"So you finally decided to let me in again."

"Like we had any choice," Kingsley answered, and kept walking.

"It's here," he said, as they stepped in front of the building he already knew well. "Some of the members live here, the Weasleys, Harry and Hermione, and Remus sometimes. The rest of us just come for the meetings."

"There aren't many wards around it."

"If they were trying to attack us, they wouldn't make much difference, not against powerful wizards. These are mostly for basic protection; the place does look like simple ruins to everyone, after all, so it doesn't draw much attention. Come in now, and keep quiet, everyone's asleep."

He walked inside and followed Kingsley into the Kitchen, where Remus was waiting for them at the table.

"Severus," he said, nodding, as he walked in.

"Lupin," he greeted back and sat down with the other wizards. "So, why am I here?"

"I've heard rumours among the werewolves."

"What kind of rumours?"

"Apparently, your Master has been sending them on increasingly dangerous missions, and they are not as happy as they used to be."

"You mean he has been sending them on suicide missions," Severus corrected.

"So it's true," Remus muttered, and when Severus nodded he continued, "Why?"

"He claims he won't waste powerful wizards in those missions, when he can send half-breeds."

"Fenrir is getting tired of it. He looks after his pack, and doesn't like them being killed for no reason. He's actually reconsidering his support to the Dark Lord."

"He would never join the light side. He enjoys killing too much, and knows he wouldn't be allowed to do it if he switched sides," Severus said.

"But some of the others might. And even if they didn't, they would help us just by being neutral."

"And what does this have to do with me?" he asked, not seeing why they had taken him there to discuss it.

"If you convinced your Master to send more werewolves on those kinds of missions, if more got killed, then it would speed things up. Maybe Fenrir," he said, but was interrupted by someone opening the kitchen door.

The three of them turned as one towards the entrance, shocked to find Hermione standing there, barely dressed. After she left, they kept discussing the werewolves, but Severus was barely paying attention, too busy thinking about her.

A few hours later, after he was sure everyone was asleep or gone, he went to her bedroom, not caring if anyone saw him; he just wanted to be with her, to touch her, to feel her.

The next morning, he woke when he felt the Dark Mark on his arm burn. They had spent hours together, his sore muscles proof of that, but nothing a few potions couldn't fix.

His Master was quickly becoming impatient, wanting to know if he had any news from the Order, but Severus decided he would make him wait a bit longer. He still had to come up with an excuse for not being able to get the prisoners sent to Azkaban, so he told him he would meet the Order again that afternoon, and they would then tell him what they had decided.

After spending the entire morning working with Bellatrix, trying to find all the weak spots in her plans to tell the Order, he finally left to his place, writing Hermione a message, asking her to meet him there as soon as she could.

"I heard they're letting you back in," she said, smiling, as she entered.

"So it seems."

"That's a good thing, right?"

"It will make passing information a lot easier."

"You told Kingsley you didn't want me involved in all this anymore," she said, looking hurt for a moment.

"It's dangerous, and there's no need for you to be exposed."

"Well, you shouldn't have bothered; I'm leaving anyway."

"Leaving? Where?"

"Ron and Harry are leaving, they will go search for the Horcruxes, and I'm going with them," she said, her eyes locked on his, as if trying to read his reaction.

"What? That's stupid!" he said, his suddenly angry. "They have the potion I gave you to find the Horcruxes, why would they ever go on a wild hunt, when they don't even know what they're looking for?"

"We have a few clues. We will be visiting Godric's Hollow first, and then we'll decide where to go next."

"And what will happen when the Dark Lord discovers you are running around unprotected? He will send every man after you. You will all be dead before you even manage to find a single Horcrux."

"We've faced him before, and we can do it again. We can take care of ourselves."

"You are not powerful enough yet; you won't stand a chance. You have to stay here, where you are safe," he said, moving closer to her.

"Stop trying to lock me up, to keep me away from danger. I'm not a child, and I'm sick of being treated like one."

"I know you're not a child, I'm just trying to keep you safe. No matter how much you've seen, you have no idea what it really is like out there, living your life like this, not knowing if you'll live to see another day. There's more to war than you have seen, and things you should never know." They both stayed in silent for a few moments, looking at each other, and then he stepped closer to her, cupping her face in his hand.

"You deserve a better life," he whispered softly, and then leaned closer, his lips almost touching her. He felt her lean closer and close her eyes, and the he said, "Don't go."

"I have to," she said, her eyes still closed, her lips slightly parted.

"No. You can stay."

"I can't leave them alone," she whispered, shaking her head slightly.

"They can take care of themselves," he said, his other hand on her hips, but still not kissing her.

"We have to do this together, the three of us."

"They don't need you," he said, and she suddenly pulled back.

"They don't need me? Is that what you think?" When he didn't answer, she continued. "Why should I stay? What's here for me?" she asked, and he wasn't sure what she wanted him to answer.

"This is just business, remember? Why do you even care what happens to me? I'm nothing but entertainment," she said, turning around and hurriedly walking to the door.

"Wait," he said, but she didn't stop.

"Don't leave," he said softly, and watched her pause, take a deep breath, and turn to him again.

"I have to," she answered as he moved closer. "We are leaving tonight, and I still have things to do before then."

"There's plenty of time," he said, his lips ghosting up her neck, and he felt her shiver.

"Why?" she asked.

"I don't want you to leave."

Without giving her more time to think, he took her arm and pulled her closer to him, his other hand cupping her face as he slowly kissed her lips, feeling her body relax in his arms. After a few moments, he stepped back, pulling her with him, never breaking the kiss as he slowly made his way up the stairs and into his bedroom.

He carefully lowered her onto the bed, covering her body with his, kissing her softly as he slowly undressed her, his lips caressing every bit of skin as it was revealed. His moves were slow, his caresses gentle as he moved down her body, softly teasing her with his hands and lips.

"Need you," she moaned, her fingers in his hair, pulling him up for a kiss.

Her hands travelled down his chest, undoing his shirt hastily, sending some of the buttons flying. For some reason, he wanted to take his time, to make it last as long as he could. Moving her hands away, he slowly undressed himself, not missing her heated stare as he did it.

He leaned on top of her again finally feeling her skin against his as he slowly slid inside of her.

It felt like heaven, her tight heat surrounding him, her hands on his shoulders, pulling him down, closer to her. He started moving, but his thrusts were long and slow, his lips softly kissing her neck as they both moaned.

He could feel her breathing raggedly, as he slowly built the tension up.

"Harder, please," she moaned, and he felt her muscles contracting around him, but he kept the same pace, riding her first orgasm, and then the second one.

"Oh fuck," she moaned, and her back arched as she tried to push him deeper, make him move faster.

"Do watch your language, Miss Granger," he chuckled, keeping the same slow rhythm, and was surprised when she started laughing. "What is it that you find so amusing?" he asked, rising a single eyebrow, and stopping his movements.

"Miss Granger," she said, and laughed harder. He frowned, and she seemed to calm down long enough to explain. "It's funny, after all we've been through, after this," she said, looking down at their joined bodies, and blushing slightly, "you still call me Miss Granger," she said, starting to laugh again.

"And how should I call you?" he asked then seductively, his lips by her ear, his hands caressing her breasts.

"How about Hermione?" she suggested.

"Hermione," he whispered in a husky voice, and she moaned loudly, arching against him again.

"And do I still have to call you Professor?" she asked, smirking as she tightened her inner muscles around his erection, making him groan.

"I guess you could call me by my name, as well," he said, after a few moments.

"Severus," she moaned. "What are you waiting for?" she asked then, locking her legs around his waist and sinking her nails in his back.

He moaned at the feeling, and had to fight hard to control himself. After a few more minutes of the same slow rhythm, he heard her groan and then, in a swift motion, flip them over, so that she was now on top of him.

"Better," she breathed, and then leaned back into a sitting position, sending him deeper inside of her. "Feel so good," she said, and started moving up and down faster.

He watched her, mesmerized, for a few moments, the expression of bliss on her face as the rhythm increased, and then leaned closer, his lips nibbling and kissing her neck, his hands playing with her breasts as she rode him harder and faster.

Soon her body was tightening around him again, only this time he couldn't hold back, both of them moaning loudly as they reached their climax together.

He fell back, exhausted, his arms around her waist as she rested on top of him, both panting but satisfied. After a few moments, he felt her move again, trying to roll to the side, but he tightened his arms around her, keeping her were she was.

He felt her move her arms to either side of him, trying to get more comfortable, her head resting on his chest, and he moved his fingers lazily up and down her back, caressing her soft skin and making her shiver. He was far too comfortable to move, and didn't want to let her go.

He woke up startled when he felt the Mark on his arm burn, again. He was lying on his back, Hermione next to him, her arm around his waist and her head resting on his shoulder. Not wanting to wake her up, he carefully slid out of bed and reached for his clothes.

"What's going on?" she asked sleepily, and turned to face him, clearly uncomfortable when she saw him getting dress, probably thinking he was trying to sneak out.

"The Dark Lord is calling. Stay here," he said, as she started to get up, "I'll be back soon."

"But I'm leaving tonight. I have to get ready," she mumbled.

"There's still plenty of time. Just wait here," he repeated, and then leaned closer to her and kissed her softly before leaving.

"Master," he said, bowing, as he arrived to headquarters.

"You said you were meeting the Order today."

"Yes, my Lord."

"What is their decision?"

"They seem to believe what I said. Some of them still don't trust me, but they will let me back into the Order."

"Good, this will prove to be extremely helpful. You will be rewarded for this, Severus."

"Thank you, Master."

"I told you I wanted my Death Eaters taken to Azkaban soon, have you discussed it with the Order yet?"

"I have, Master, but they seem reluctant to do so. They are keeping them in separate places, for security reasons."

"Then insist; I need them moved there soon."

"Yes, Master," he said bowing, and turned to leave.

"Oh, and Severus," Voldemort said then, and he turned to face him again, noticing the evil glint in his eyes. "The witch, I want her taken care of."

He had feared something like this would happen, but still felt his heart beat faster, his mind reeling, trying to find a way out of it. "May I ask why, Master?"

"She knows too much, she could be dangerous. I heard she is dear to Potter. I want him to remember he will lose everything if he stands against me."

"But, Master, they have just taken me back into the Order; the girl's death would be suspicious. If something happened to her, they would know I was involved, and we would lose the opportunity to spy on them."

"Then make it look like an accident, I don't care. She is a liability; it is time for her to die."

"Master, if…"

"No, Severus," he interrupted, his eyes flashing angrily. "I want this done, and I want you to do it. Now go," he ordered, and with a wave of his hand, the door banged open.

Back in Ireland, he searched his books for hours, and finally made a decision.

Soft footsteps down the stairs made him lift his eyes from the pages he had been intently reading for at least half an hour, and he almost sighed when he saw her walk into the library, her hair wild and a white silk bed sheet loosely wrapped around her body. He watched her visibly relax when she saw him, lowering her wand as she smiled warmly.

"You're back," she said, standing by the door. When he didn't answer she continued, "I was scared something had happened to you."

"There's no need to be scared," he muttered as she walked closer.

"What are you doing?" she asked, smiling and trying to see what he was reading.

"Research."

"At these hours?" she asked, frowning.

"The Dark Lord knows I'm back in the Order," he said seriously, and walked to where she was standing.

"So?"

"He thinks you are dangerous to him, that you know too much."

"What is that supposed to mean?" she asked, and he could see a flash of fear cross her eyes, but it was gone in an instant.

"He doesn't want to risk me being exposed as a spy."

"But I would never."

"I know," he interrupted. "He doesn't care."

"But… what…?" she mumbled, confused, her eyes darting from him to the books he had been reading.

"He told me to take care of it," he said, and watched her eyes go back to him, wide with shock.

"You can't," she muttered, and stepped back.

"Hermione," he said, reaching his hand to cup her face, but she stepped back again.

"But I'm leaving with Ron and Harry, I won't even be around the Order," she pleaded.

"It doesn't matter," he answered sadly.

"You can't, please, you can't do this to me," she whispered, as tears welled up in her eyes. "There has to be another way."

"There isn't," he said, shaking his head. "I'm sorry."

"Please, Severus," she muttered, stepping closer to him and lifting her hand to his face, her fingers caressing his jaw as he leaned in to her touch.

"Everything will be alright," he said, and wrapped his arms around her, holding her close to him. "You deserve better than this," he muttered, almost to himself.

"No," she sobbed, shaking her head against his shoulder and tightening her arms around her.

"It's your chance to get away from all this; your chance to have a better life."

"What if I don't want to get away?" she whispered, lifting her face to look at him.

Like in a trance, he slowly leaned down, kissing her softly, knowing it would be the last time. He would never have this witch in his arms again, never would see her eyes shine when she saw him, as much as she tried to hide it. So many things had been left unsaid, so many undone, but it was too late. He would do what he had to, protect her in any way he could, and make sure this time she stayed away from this kind of life, the dangers of working with spies such as himself. He would take care of her, but from afar.

After what felt like hours, he finally broke the kiss, and stepped back.

"It's time," he said, as he softy caressed her face.

"What will happen now?"

"You don't have to worry," he said.

"I will miss you," she smiled, sadly.

"No, you won't," he answered, and lifted his wand.

"I love you," she said softly, and a second later, a flash of red light left his wand and hit her. He held her body close for a moment, breathing in her sent, trying to commit it to memory, and whispered, "I love you, too," by her ear, knowing she couldn't hear him.

He carefully lay her down on the couch before going back to his desk to retrieve the book he had been reading. Going through the instructions one last time, he took a deep breath and cleared his mind, all his concentration needed as he took the first steps of the complicated and powerful Memory Charm.


	31. questions

She could hear faint voices around her, but couldn't make out what they were saying. She tried to open her eyes, but the light hurt too much. She could tell she was lying down, she could feel something soft beneath her, but couldn't move a muscle, just breathing was hard enough.

The darkness surrounded her again, the voices died out, but there was nothing she could do to stop it. Then she felt something warm on her skin, soft hands touching her, new voices growing stronger, but still the light was blinding, and she couldn't open her eyes. She tried to part her lips, tried to ask what was going on, but no sound left her mouth. Her head felt like it was about to explode, she felt tears in her eyes from the pain, and when the darkness approached again, she welcomed it.

She kept drifting back and forth, between darkness and light, pain and peace. She wasn't sure how long she had been like that, but it felt like ages. She could feel her breathing growing stronger, and was surprised when one night, she could finally manage to move a finger. It was just one finger, and it barely moved, but it was enough to fuel her determination. Time passed, maybe weeks, maybe just hours, and she finally parted her lips, whispering softly a name, she wasn't sure which, and then groaning softly, as she felt her strength drained by the effort.

"Hermione?" a voice whispered by her side, and she felt a warm hand around her own. "Hermione, can you hear me?"

With the little strength she had left, she managed another groan, and then more voices reached her ears.

"She's awake, I think she's awake," one of them whispered excitedly.

"Call Poppy," another called, and soon she felt hands on the back of her head, lifting her slightly, and something cold against her lips.

"Drink this, dear," someone said. "It will make you feel better."

She did as they asked, and soon felt the pain go away. She wanted to move, to speak, but her body felt heavy, tired, and no matter how much she fought it, the darkness surrounded her once more.

As she opened her eyes, she noticed the light no longer blinded her. There was a small window, right in front of her, and she could tell it was barely dawn. She looked around the room, and noticed two figures on the other side of her bed. It didn't take her long to realize just who they were.

"Harry? Ron?" she whispered, her voice hoarse. She heard them mumble something in their sleep, and called their names again.

"Wh…what?" Ron said, startled, as he woke up, looking around the room, and trying to see where the voice was coming from.

"Hermione" Harry said then, and they both moved closer to her on either side of the bed, taking her hands in theirs.

"Oh, thank goodness you're awake."

"You had us so worried."

"What's happened? Where am I?" she rasped.

"We're at headquarters. Snape brought you here after the explosion."

"Snape? What do you mean Snape, isn't he on the run?" She noticed the surprised expressions on their faces and asked, "What's going on?"

"Snape's with the Order, don't you remember?" Harry asked, clearly worried.

"But… but he killed Dumbledore." They looked at her again, but none of them spoke.

"What's happened?" she asked, as she tried to get up, but her head hurt, and she felt the room spin as soon as she moved.

"Lay back," said Ron gently, his hands on her shoulders as he pushed her back on the bed.

"What's happened to me?" she whispered then.

"Well, we're not sure. We were waiting for you here; we were beginning to worry, because you were late, and then Snape Apparated by the door, with you in his arms. He said you had been attacked by Death Eaters."

"What?"

"Well, he said they were trying to take you to Voldemort, and you were fighting back, and then there was an explosion, he's not sure how it happened. The Death Eaters left then, probably thinking you were dead. When he found you, he said you were barely breathing."

"But Snape is one of them, he's a Death Eater, right?" she asked, uncertainly.

"No, he's spying for the Order," Ron corrected, looking at her in a way that was making her nervous, as if she was crazy or something.

She was about to ask another question when she was interrupted.

"Hermione, you are awake!" came Ginny's voice from the doorway. "We were so worried." She smiled weakly as she watched her walk to where she was. "I'm so glad you're better, I was worried you wouldn't be awake for the wedding."

"Wedding? What wedding?"

"Well, Bill and Fleur's, of course," Ginny answered, her smile faltering a bit.

"But that's still months away."

"What do you mean? It's this weekend."

"What? That's impossible. Did they change the date?" she looked at the three of them, noticing the way they glanced at each other, a confused and worried expression on each face. "What's going on?"

"Well, you've been unconscious for almost three weeks, Hermione," Harry finally answered, still holding her hand.

"Three weeks? That still doesn't explain…"

"What's the last thing you remember?" Ron asked gently.

"Well," she said, after thinking for a moment, "I remember going to Diagon Alley to buy some books, and then heading back here. Kingsley had been told there was a spy in the Ministry, and he had called a meeting."

"But that was just a couple of weeks after Dumbledore's Death."

"So?" she asked, warily.

"Hermione, that meeting took place over two months ago," answered Ron.

"What? No," she said, a little laugh leaving her lips, "that's impossible. It can't be that long ago." She looked at them again, silently hoping they would tell her it was all just a big joke.

"Oh, dear, you're awake." Molly's voice distracted her, and she turned to the door again, to find her standing there, looking relieved, and closely followed by Kingsley and Remus.

"It's good to see you're finally awake. You had us worried," Kingsley said, in his deep voice.

"Yes, sorry about that," she replied, unable to think of anything else to say.

"Are these three bothering you, dear?" Molly asked, looking at Harry, Ron and Ginny as if they were doing something terrible.

"Oh, no; they are just bringing me up to date."

"Well, off you go, now. Hermione needs some rest, to get her strength back. You have a wedding to attend to in just a few days," she said, smiling sweetly.

"But, mom," Ginny complained, but Molly refused to listen, and nearly pushed them out of the room.

"We'll come back later," Ron promised as they left.

"I should be going, too," Kingsley told her. "It's good to see you're recovering."

"Thank you," she answered, surprised at the way the man looked at her as he spoke. They had always gotten along, but weren't really close.

When it was just her and Remus in the room, she motioned him closer.

"What's going on, Remus?" she asked, as he sat by the bed.

"What do you mean?"

"They told me I had been in an explosion."

"You don't remember what happened?" he asked, and she just shook her head. "Well, I only know what Severus told us. Apparently, you'd left to see your contact, but were ambushed by Death Eaters. He thinks they were following you. They attacked you and you fought them back; there was an explosion then, and the building you were in collapsed. He had to wait until all the Death Eaters were gone before he could look for you. He said part of the roof had fallen on top of you."

She stayed silent as he spoke, too shocked to speak, and after a few moments, he continued.

"We were all here when he brought you. Merlin, we thought you were dead," he said, the last part barely a whisper. "He carried you in here himself, and refused to leave until he was sure you would be alright. Madam Pomfrey assured him it would take some time, but you would recover." He took a deep breath, as if gathering strength, before speaking again. "You had many broken bones, internal bleedings, a punctured lung, but she assured us she could fix it, said he had brought you here in time. When after two days you still hadn't woken up, we started to get worried. Your body was healing fast, but you weren't responding. She said you probably had a big concussion, that it was just a matter of time before you awoke, that we just had to be patient. After the first week, Kingsley talked to a healer in St. Mungo's, specialized in this kind of problems. We couldn't take you there, because we couldn't really explain them what had happened to you, but he got him to come here. After examining you, he agreed with Poppy. There was nothing we could do but wait."

"How long?" she asked, refusing to believe what Harry and Ron had said.

"19 days," he answered without even thinking, and not looking at her.

"I don't remember," she muttered, and he turned to her again.

"Well, you did hit your head pretty hard, it's no wonder you don't remember when they attacked you."

"No," she said, shaking her head, then winced at the pain. "Before that. They told me it's been over two months since Dumbledore's death, but I just remember the first two weeks, and then nothing."

"You don't remember?" he asked, surprised.

"No. Please, tell me what happened," she begged him.

"I'm not sure I should be the one telling you this."

"Telling me what?"

"Maybe this should wait until you are feeling better," he suggested.

"Remus, please, I need to know."

"I don't know the whole story; you were very secretive about it."

"Secretive? What are you talking about?"

"Well," he said, after taking a deep breath. "It all happened just a few days before you were hurt, at least the main part. One night Kingsley called a meeting, and you brought a Pensieve. You had been given a memory, it was Snape's, and it showed the reasons why he had killed Dumbledore. Apparently, you had both been working with someone, a Death Eater, I think. He had been passing information through you, but he wanted Snape back in the Order. After a few days discussing it, we decided to take him back. That was the day before they attacked you, and he brought you here."

"I had been working with a Death Eater? That's impossible," she said, almost to herself. He took her hand in his before continuing.

"You had been working with him for a few months by then."

"Who? Who was it?"

"I don't know, you never told us."

"What else do you know?"

"That's all," he said, but she knew he wasn't telling her everything, by the way he avoided eye contact. "I think I'll go get Poppy. She'd want to know you're awake."

"Remus, wait," she said, but he just told her she needed to get some rest before leaving the room.

As soon as Madam Pomfrey heard she was awake, she went to see her. She spent over an hour checking her, making sure her body had healed properly. After much consideration, she decided to tell her about the memory loss, but the witch assured her it was probably just temporary, and that she should rest and relax, that the memories would come back soon. She was forced to drink more potions, one of them a Sleeping Draught, and when she awoke again, it was the next day.

"You look much better," Ron said, as he and Harry entered the room.

"Well, Madam Pomfrey gave me a potion for the pain, so I'm feeling a lot better," she said, trying to sound cheerful. "She said I could move back to my bedroom, when I felt better."

"Maybe you should stay here a little longer," Harry suggested, as she started to get up.

"Nonsense, I'm alright," she said dismissively, but as she tried to stand, she lost balance, Ron's hands on her waist preventing her from falling, on the last second. "OK, maybe I need a little help getting there, but I'm still going," she said stubbornly, making both Harry and Ron laugh.

With their help, she slowly made her way out of the infirmary, but as they walked down the hall towards the stairs, the door to the library opened.

"Order meeting," Harry explained, as the members started walking out of the room. Some of them stopped to ask her how she was feeling, but others just walked by, throwing her angry looks.

"What's going on?" she asked Harry, confused, but before he could answer a young Auror spoke.

"Good to see you're alright; now you can run back to your little friend, give him some more information. Maybe you can even get a few more Death Eaters to join the Order."

Before anyone could say anything else, she heard a loud growl, and the next second, the Auror was thrown against the wall, Remus' hand firmly around his neck.

"That is enough," he seethed. "Talk to her like that again, and I'll make sure you regret it."

"Remus," Bill said, as he stood next to him, trying to calm him down.

"Full moon tonight," Ron whispered by her ear as Remus let go of the other man, a warning look still on his face.

"Come on, lets get you upstairs," Harry said, trying to distract her.

"Why did he say that? Why were the others looking at me like that?"

"Well, you see, you had been working with someone for some time," Ron started, but she interrupted.

"Remus said I'd been working with a Death Eater."

"Right, well, some of the members think you betrayed us," he said.

"What? I would never!"

"We know, but they are new, they don't know you as well as we do. Some think both you and Snape are traitors."

"And what do you think?" she asked as they helped her sit on the bed.

"I don't think you would betray us, and as much as I hate to admit it," Harry said, "what we saw in the Pensieve about Snape was quite convincing."

"What were the memories about?" she asked, but before they could answer, they heard Molly's voice calling them.

"We have to go," Ron said, clearly relieved he didn't have to answer more questions.

"You get some rest, we'll be back to help you down the stairs when lunch is ready."

She new they weren't telling her everything, and she promised herself she would find out exactly what had happened to her, and what she had forgotten.


	32. alone

"Is the witch dead?" Voldemort asked Snape as soon as he entered headquarters.

"I'm not sure yet, Master," he answered.

"What do you mean, you are not sure?" he asked, anger evident in his voice, and Severus knew he was walking a very thin line.

"She must have suspected I was about to attack her, and was ready for it. We duelled, and finally I decided to simply blow the building we were in up. Unfortunately, before I could make sure she was dead, members of the Order started Apparating to the place. I had to tell them she had been attacked by Death Eaters, and I was there trying to save her."

"But you don't know if she is still alive?"

"No, Master. When they took her, she was badly injured, and barely alive. I doubt she will survive."

The pain hit him before he even knew what was happening, his Master's red eyes fixed on him as he smirked.

"I don't want doubts, Severus," he said, after a few moments, lifting the curse.

"I can't approach her again, Master, or they will suspect me," he panted. "I did manage to Obliviate her as they took her away, without them noticing. Even if she recovers from her injuries, she won't remember anything important about us working together."

"I told you I wanted her dead," he said, in a low, dangerous voice, and again, pain filled his body, like fire underneath his skin.

"I know, my Lord, and I'm sorry, but there's no way I can get to her now without them suspecting me. I do believe, however, that Potter got the message you wished to send."

"Go back now; make sure she's no longer a threat to us," he said, and left Severus alone in the room, still trying to get up. He knew the only reason he was still alive was because he had managed to get back in the Order, because he was still useful.

As much as he tried to avoid it, his mind kept going back to what he had done to her. It had been a hard decision, and he had barely had time to prepare. At the time, it had seemed like a good idea, but as he held her bleeding body in his arms, he wondered if it had been the right choice.

He hadn't Obliviated her, knowing very well how dangerous that spell could be, when trying to erase such important memories, and such a long period of time. After much research, he had found an ancient spell that would work, without the risk of reducing her to a complete idiot. It was a complex charm, and required a lot of power and concentration, to be properly cast. The way it worked was, it wouldn't really erase the memories, it would simply block them, make it impossible for her mind to recall them. The charm, of course, was highly unstable, and could be broken by powerful magic; that was why he would need to keep an eye on her.

The bad part was, she would remain unconscious until the charm completed the blocking, and that could take days, or maybe longer, so he was forced to find a way to keep her asleep, without the Order realizing what was really happening, and also a way to convince his Master he had really tried to kill her.

He had finished casting the spell, and without even stopping to think, he had taken her in his arms and Apparated them to an abandoned building far from the city. He knew she couldn't feel any pain, as long as she was unconscious, but that didn't make him feel any better. He gently placed her on the ground and took his wand. The curses he had used to torture people, wizards and Muggles alike, were now used to keep her alive, breaking her body so neither side would even suspect what really had happened. When he was sure it would be enough, he flicked his wand towards the building, making it explode.

Standing by the door to headquarters, fear almost paralyzed him, as he wondered if it had been too much. Her warm blood soaked his robes, and he could barely feel her heart beat. They had tried to take her from him as soon as they saw her, but he wouldn't let go, not until he was sure she would survive.

He had visited her often, silently watching her body heal, when he was sure no one would notice. Days passed, and he grew nervous; it was taking too long. He had gone over the spell time and again, and then used a Pensieve to watch exactly what had happened as he cast it. No matter how many times he went over it, he had done exactly what the book instructed; there had been no mistakes, so why wasn't she awake yet?

A lot happened during the weeks she had been unconscious, the most important one the breakout from Azkaban. After much discussion, he had managed to convince Kingsley to send some of the prisoners, the least dangerous ones, back to the prison. His Master hadn't been entirely happy, since the men he really needed were still out of his reach, but there wasn't enough time to do anything else.

The break out had gone exactly as planned, and as soon as it was over; Bellatrix had been rewarded by Voldemort. His glee, however, turned to rage only hours later, and the woman had gone through a good dose of Cruciatus before the night was over.

Knowing the prisoners were about to escape, strong tracking spells had been placed on each of them, and as soon as they left the prison they were hunted down and captured again, along with quite a few more Death Eaters. Of course, Severus had been punished as well, because, according to his Master, he should have known about the tracking, but Voldemort soon forgot about him, his rage focused on the woman that had been in charge of the failed mission.

He found out she had finally awoken a day after it happened, as he was leaving the Order's headquarters after a meeting early in the morning. He was glad he had stayed behind discussing the new plans with Kingsley, this way he managed to avoid facing her, at least for the time being. However, he did hear the rude comment sent her way by one of the Aurors, but was saved the trouble of defending her by a rather violent Remus Lupin. Who would have thought the wolf had it in him?

Still, he didn't like the way the man behaved around her, his protectiveness, but there wasn't anything he could do about it; he was, after all, the only one who knew they had been together. It wasn't just the wolf. He had noticed Kingsley's behaviour as well, spending more time at headquarters than necessary, sometimes talking to her, others just watching her from afar, as Severus did.

To be honest, it wasn't the two men that worried him the most; it was the Weasley boy. They had been friends for years, he knew that, but their relationship seemed different than with Potter. Severus had been forced to spend more and more time at headquarters, and the two of them always seemed to be together. He would find them in the library, sitting close together, her head sometimes resting on the boy's shoulder as she read, or he would hear them talking animatedly and laughing loudly. He noticed the way the boy looked at her, the way he touched her, and he wanted nothing more than to walk to where she was standing and take her with him, take her away, just for himself. He was forced to stand aside, to let her move on with her life, even if it was that dunderhead she chose.

He knew she had been asking questions about what had happened during the last few months; Kingsley had warned Severus she had spoken to him and some other members, asking what they knew. The Auror had asked him whether they should tell her the truth, and he had advised him against it, assuring him she would be safer if she didn't know.

The next three days he felt her eyes on him whenever he was in the same room, which, with all the meetings they had been calling, was rather often. He was sure she knew by now she had been working with him, if not directly, and if the others refused to give her more information; she would soon turn to him. He had been trying to avoid her, especially being alone with her, but she was a persistent witch.

"Professor Snape, may I have a word with you?" she asked one afternoon, after blocking his way to the door as the meeting they had been in was over.

"I do not have time for this, Miss Granger," he had answered coldly, stepping aside and trying to get to the door, but she wouldn't let him.

"I'm sorry, Sir. It will be just a moment, I promise."

"While you spend your days here, reading books and chatting with your friends, others have real work to do, so if you'll excuse me," he said rudely, but she still refused to let him out.

"Please, Sir," she said, more firmly, still standing in front of the door.

"Very well," he finally relented. "What do you want?"

"You know I don't remember anything that's happened the last few months, right?"

"Yes."

"They told me you were the one that brought me here, the one that saved my life after I was attacked. I just wanted to th…"

"I do not have time for sentimentalisms, Miss Granger," he interrupted briskly.

"Well, they also told me I had apparently been meeting a Death Eater, and I was wondering if maybe you knew something about…"

"I never worked with you," he interrupted again. "We were both merely working with the same person, and that is all I know," he said, and walked past her, finally reaching the door.

"Sir, please," she said, and took his hand to stop him. He inhaled sharply at the unexpected contact, and slowly turned around to face her again, noticing her eyes fixed on their joined hands. He looked at her intently, fearing she might remember something, but then she blushed and quickly let go of his hand, stepping back.

"What you were doing was dangerous, Miss Granger, and I suggest you forget about it. Again," he said, as he opened the door and stepped outside, Apparating to his place the next second.

He was staying at Spinner's End again. He hadn't gone back to his place in Ireland since the night Voldemort had ordered him to kill her, except to gather some books and potions he had kept there. The place seemed so empty now, and every time he stepped inside, he couldn't help but remember what it had been like with her there. Then his mind would go back to the night he had ended it, the night he had taken away her memories to keep her alive, and he would remember holding her broken body in his arms, wondering if he had accidentally killed her, while he was trying to save her.

There was one thing he had to do, one he had been delaying for days, until he was sure she was really all right. He had to go see her parents.

Just as every other time he had been there, he put his mask on before Apparating to the house. The first few times, they had been surprised to find a masked man Apparating to their hiding place, but then they had gotten used to his short visits.

"Would you like something to drink?" her mother offered, like she always did, and, smiling to himself, he declined, as he always did.

"You haven't come here in weeks, is everything alright?"

"There has been an accident," he said, and noticing their worried looks, he quickly added, "nothing to worry about, your daughter is safe." They sighed in relief, and asked him to sit down.

"What happened then?"

"The details are not important. I came here because I think that maybe it is time for you to see her, just a short visit. Because of the accident, she has no recollection of what happened during the last few months, and so she doesn't know you were attacked at your house and sent here for safety."

"She doesn't remember?" her mother asked.

"But she is alright, isn't she? Surely there must be something you can do to help her remember?"

"Magic is no help in this kind of situation. Given time, she might remember, but maybe she will not. What's important is that she is alive and healthy, and I'm sure you want to see her."

"Of course."

"When are we leaving?"

"First, I have to find a safe place where you can meet. It might take a few days. Here," he said, drawing his wand and pointing it at one of the teacups on the table, muttering a spell. "When the time is right, this cup will turn orange. From then on, you will have ten minutes to get ready, then you have to touch it, both of you at the same time, and it will take you to your daughter."

"It will take us to her? Why can't she come here?"

"It's safer that way," he answered. "Once you get there, you will have one hour, then the cup will turn blue, and ten minutes later, you have to touch it again, and it will bring you back here."

"Just one hour?"

"If you stayed longer, someone could find her. It would put her in danger, and I'm sure you wouldn't want that." When they both shook their heads, he continued. "Since she doesn't remember what happened in these last few months, she also can't remember working with me, so I would appreciate it if you told her as little as possible about your current situation."

"But you are helping us, and her, right? Why don't you want her to know?"

"Trust me, it's better that way," he said, getting up.

"Are you sure you don't want anything? A cup of tea, maybe?"

"No, thank you, I don't have much time. Just pay attention to the cup, and remember you both have to touch it at the same time."

"Thank you, for everything," her mother said, and he nodded and Apparated away.


	33. the contact

She could tell they were avoiding her, and it was frustrating. She kept asking questions about what had happened the last few months, but they just kept repeating the same things over and over again, assuring her that was all they knew. Bloody liars.

After what had happened with the Auror that morning after the meeting, she had spent the rest of the day in her bedroom, knowing they had another meeting that day and not wanting to run into them again. Molly had insisted she stayed in bed, and that was fine with her, but she soon grew tired of staying put.

She wasn't sure just what time it was, but as she stepped out of the bedroom, she heard voices downstairs. She still felt a bit weak, and so it took her longer than usual to reach the kitchen, but as she moved closer to the door, she heard someone say her name.

"I think Hermione deserves to know the truth."

"Why? What good would it do? We already get the information we need from Snape; there's no need for her to know what she had been involved in."

"She's a smart witch. Just how long do you think it will take her to figure it out, Kingsley? I think it would be best if she got the facts from us, rather than guessing."

"Weren't you here the last three months, Remus? Didn't you see how worried she always looked, how she even fought with Harry and Ron? She didn't need that weight on her shoulders. I think she's better off this way."

"I don't want to lie to her, she deserves better."

"You're right, she deserves better; much better than the life she was living. You've worked with spies; you know what it is like. This could be her chance to have a better life, and you can't take that away from her," said Kingsley, and then she heard the chairs moving. Afraid they would find her there, she hurriedly made her way back to the bedroom.

She was right, they were holding things back. A part of her was afraid of what she might discover, it sounded like she had done awful things; but another part just needed to know, no matter what.

She spent the rest of the day going over what she had heard, and the next morning, she woke up early and made her way to the kitchen to fix herself some breakfast. She had been there for over an hour before the others woke up.

"Hermione, what are you doing here?" asked Ron, as he entered the kitchen. "You should be in bed."

"I already told you I'm feeling much better. Besides, I've spent the last three weeks in a bed, right? I don't think I need any more rest."

He didn't look too happy, but didn't say anything else and focused on the breakfast in front of him.

The first thing she did after breakfast was head to the library. She spent most of the morning reading anything and everything available about memory charms, trying to find a way to get her memories back. She was surprised when Ron sat next to her, asking how he could help her, and spending hours there, instead of being out with his brothers, Ginny and Harry, having fun. She had to admit she was both surprised and touched by this. Still, around lunchtime, she had taken pity and sent him with the others, knowing just how much he hated doing research.

"I knew you'd be here," a soft voice said from behind her, and she turned around to find Kingsley leaning against the doorframe.

"You did? How is that?"

"Well, I was sure you'd be looking for a way to remember," he said, and stepped closer to her. "Any luck?"

"Not yet," she answered with a sigh, remembering from the conversation she had overheard the previous day that he didn't really want her to remember.

"Well, I got this for you," he said then, and sat down next to her.

"What is it?" she asked, as he put a book on the small table in front of her.

"It's just an old book I had on the subject; I thought you might want to read it."

"Thank you," she said, turning to him, a smile on her lips.

He took her hand as he smiled back; muttering, "I hope it helps," and then she heard someone clear their throat.

Startled, she let go of his hand and looked up, to find Severus Snape standing by the door, a single brow raised.

"Am I interrupting?" he asked, his voice amused, but she saw something different in his expression. He still looked like the dark, cruel wizard she had known for so long, but there was also something different.

"No, no," Kingsley muttered, and got up. "I was just giving Hermione a book I thought she would like."

"It's good to know there's such an important reason for the meeting being delayed, but please, keep in mind some of us have more important things to do than sit around waiting for you" he said, giving them both an angry look before walking away.

"Are you coming?" Kingsley asked as he reached the door, turning back to her.

"What?"

"To the meeting, are you coming?" he repeated, and she was by him in a second, both walking into the room full of Order Members and taking a seat.

She wasn't sure what they were discussing. She had paid attention the first few minutes, but then something distracted her. As she was looking around the room, counting all the new faces there, she noticed Snape looking at her. It was more like a glance, and he turned back so quickly when their eyes met, that she wasn't sure she hadn't just imagined it. She had seen something in his expression, much like what she had noticed back at the library just a few minutes earlier. His face was cold and indifferent as usual, but in his eyes, she saw something new, something that looked like regret. Why would he look at her like that? Was he sorry he had saved her?

"Did you find anything useful?" Ron's voice by her ear brought her back to reality.

"Not yet. Kingsley lent me a book I hadn't read yet, maybe there will be something there."

"We could keep looking after the meeting, I'm sure there are many books we haven't gone through yet," he said, a reassuring smile on his lips, and she couldn't help smiling back at him.

"You know, you don't have to stay in the library with me all day."

"Course I don't, but I want to help," he said. She was just about to answer when a new voice distracted her.

"I don't think we should discuss these matters around people that are not in the Order," said the same Auror that had confronted her before, looking not only at Hermione, but also at Harry and Ron.

"If they can fight for us, then they have the right to be present, and help us decide what we will do," Kingsley said calmly but firmly, and the Auror huffed and sat back down. "So, as I was saying, Severus has some new information on the Death Eaters' plans," he finished, and nodded in Snape's direction.

She watched as the wizard stood up, imposing, his long, elegant fingers pressed against the table as he leaned forward, looking at everyone in the room, except for her. Why she was noticing that, or even his fingers, she wasn't sure, just like she didn't know why she suddenly found his voice so enthralling.

He was saying something about Voldemort wanting to know where they were keeping their prisoners, and something about Dementors and the break out from Azkaban, but she wasn't really listening anymore.

"Such a waste of time," Ron whispered by her ear, as Snape spoke. "That's the same he said last time."

She gasped when Snape turned to face them, clearly having heard Ron, but as his eyes met hers, she saw again that same look, and it made her feel uncomfortable.

A few more minutes and the meeting was over, most members quickly leaving the house, and the ones that were staying over for lunch offering help to Molly. She noticed Remus stayed behind, talking to Mad Eye, and as soon as the two men were done, she made her way towards him.

She knew he wanted to tell her the truth, and was hoping maybe he would just forget what Kingsley had told him and stop lying to her.

"Remus, can we talk for a moment?" she asked, and noticed he looked hesitant.

"Well, I was actually heading for the kitchen, to help Molly with lunch."

"It will just be a moment. Please?"

"All right," he said with a sigh, and sat down at the table, next to her.

"I wanted to ask you what you knew about what happened the last few months."

"I already told you everything I know, Hermione."

"You're keeping something back, and I want to know what it is," she insisted.

"You never told me much, never told any of us much and I think there was probably a good reason you kept it to yourself."

"But I need to know, and I don't know who to ask."

"I don't think I can help you with that," he said, and she could hear regret in his voice.

"Do you know whom I'd been working with?" she asked, not really expecting him to.

"No. All I know is that he was a Death Eater, or that's what you told me."

"I don't understand. Why would I work with one of them?"

"You trusted him, really trusted him."

"How could…" she started asking, but Kingsley's voice calling Remus from the doorway interrupted them. She had the feeling he had done it on purpose.

The two days that followed were rather strange. Remus hadn't been avoiding her, but refused to answer any more questions, as did Kingsley. They did spend a lot of time with her though; probably to make sure she didn't ask anyone else, she told herself.

The meetings were far more frequent than she remembered, too, and she spent most of that time watching Snape and trying to decide if she should just confront him, and ask him what he knew, or if maybe he could even arrange a meeting for her with her "contact."

She was surprised to find out Harry and Ginny were together again, and when she had asked how it had happened, he had mumbled something about realizing what he really wanted, and then had quickly changed the subject. Ron and she spent a lot of time together those days, probably because he didn't want to see his sister and his best friend snogging all around the house. The two of them would spend most of the time in the library, researching on memory charms, and she was surprised to find he was actually a good companion. He didn't complain nearly as much as he used to, and was about the only one who didn't change the subject every time she asked something about the time she had forgotten.

With the wedding so close, the house was always full of people, and there was always something to do, the most important thing was staying away from Molly, who seemed to be going crazy with all the necessary arrangements, but finally, just a day before the wedding, she decided to talk to Snape.

Why she was surprised, she didn't know. He had acted like a cold bastard, just as she had expected him to, but something felt odd. As he was trying to leave, she had grabbed his hand to stop him. It had been just a reflex, the only way she could think of at the moment to keep him there, but it felt so familiar at the same time, as if she had done it before.

She had been shocked at that feeling, and at the faint shiver the touch had sent up her arm, but most of all, she had been shocked at his reaction. He had frozen in place, and taken a deep breath, as if trying to control himself. Did her touch repulse him that much? When she looked back at him, she saw curiosity in his eyes as they darted to their joined hands, and she quickly let go, embarrassed at her own behaviour. Then, before leaving, he had told her she should forget about what she knew; he had said it was dangerous and she should leave it like that. Was it concern she had seen on his expression then? Surely not; that was impossible. She must be hallucinating or something.

They were up at sunrise that Saturday, Molly wanted to make sure everything was ready for the wedding, and she wanted them to help. The guests would be arriving that very afternoon, Fleur's family just a few hours before that, and, as she kept repeating over and over again, everything had to be perfect for her eldest son's wedding.

There really wasn't that much left to do, and so it was still early when she went up to her room to change. When she had told Ginny, just a few days before, she needed to go to Diagon Alley to get a dress for the wedding; she had told her she already had one. Apparently, they had gone shopping together weeks before the wedding, and had bought everything they would need.

She put on the dress and looked at herself in the mirror; it was a golden, floor-length, silk dress, with a V-neck that showed some cleavage and her back bare. Wanting to be ready before the guests arrived; she quickly put on the matching high-heeled shoes, and did her make up before walking back down the stairs.

Both Harry and Ron were waiting for them in the hallway, looking very handsome in their new dress-robes, and she couldn't help but notice the way they looked at her as she approached them.

"Wow, you look beautiful," said Harry, making her blush slightly. Ron simply nodded, apparently unable to speak.

"Same goes for you two," she answered, and turned back around as Ginny joined them. It only took a second for Harry to go join her, leaving Hermione and Ron alone.

"Maybe we should go see if your mother needs our help with anything," she suggested, after a few uncomfortable moments, and he instantly agreed.

They spent the next few hours in the garden, greeting the guests and helping them to their seats. The last few guests had just arrived when the music changed, and they too were asked to take their seats.

Bill dressed in white robes, walked past them and stood by the Minister, his smile broad as he waited for Fleur. All heads turned as the witch started walking down the aisle, her beautiful hair flying in the wind as she moved, her whole body glowing as she looked at her future husband and smiled at him lovingly.

Hermione felt someone take her hand then, and turned to the side, where Ron was sitting next to her, but he refused to look at her as he held her hand, simply staring at his brother in front of them and blushing slightly.

Only when the last sparks had vanished from the sky and everyone stood up did he let go of her hand.

He spent the whole night next to her, sometimes speaking, others just standing by her side, but always around. Then, after dinner, he asked her to dance.

The garden was full of dancing couples, and they slowly walked around them until they stopped in a far corner. She could feel her heart beating faster as he turned around and put his arms around her waist, and they slowly started moving to the music. She had asked Harry a few days before, very discreetly; of course, if anything had happened between her and Ron during the summer, and he had answered they had had a few fights, completely oblivious to what she really wanted to know.

She could feel his body moving closer as they danced, and it made her feel nervous. They had decided they would keep things as they were, at least for the time being, but it seemed Ron had changed his mind. His eyes locked on hers, and she could feel the butterflies in her belly go wild as she watched him slowly move his face closer.

Their lips were merely an inch apart and her eyes fluttered closed, as she waited for the kiss, and then the weirdest thing happened, something that should never happen when after years of waiting, someone was just about to kiss you. Their noses bumped together.

Her eyes shot open, and she moved her head back a little. She saw the small smile on his face as he moved closer again, and they both tilted their heads to the same side, and then to the other side, again at the same time. She heard him laugh nervously as he cupped her face with his hands, and then they finally kissed.

It was nothing like she expected. It felt weird, there was no passion or desire, it almost felt like kissing a brother, and after a few seconds they parted, both with the same confused look of their faces. That wasn't how it was supposed to be. They were Ron and Hermione, and everyone expected them to end up together, but it just didn't feel right. Maybe they had been friends for too long, and now could only see each other as that, a good friend.

She watched him frown, his arms still around her waist, but he had taken a step back.

"That was weird," she finally whispered, now sure what she could say, and was relieved when he sighed and smiled a bit.

"Weird? So you felt it too, then?" he said, and laughed, making her laugh too.

"I don't think that is how it was supposed to be," she said, rubbing her nose. "At least now we know," she whispered.

"Well, that's enough awkwardness for one night, don't you think? How about we go back to the table and have some cake?" he asked, and started walking without even giving her time to respond.

He looked a bit put out the rest of the night, but she was glad he wasn't angry at her. They didn't spend so much time together, but at least he didn't avoid her.

The next day, Molly woke them up early again, wanting them to help put everything back in place after the party. The only thing that kept her from just yelling at the woman and going back to sleep was that she knew now it was finally over, no more preparations, or last minute cleanings.

With the help of the Order members that had attended the party and spent the night in the house, they managed to finish by lunchtime, and the boys suggested they should go and visit Fred and George, Harry claiming he needed a few things from Diagon Alley as well. It had only taken her a few minutes to convince Molly she was all right, and could leave the house without a bodyguard.

The fresh air felt wonderful after so many days trapped in the house, and it felt good to walk around people who didn't look at her hatefully or avoided her. She walked behind them; stopping in front of every shop, feeling relaxed after what felt like ages.

She was just walking past a dark alley when someone grabbed her hand and pulled her away from the main road. She was pushed against the wall by a hooded figure, and as she tried to push it away, the hood fell, and she could see just who it was in front of her. She gasped in surprise, and found the man's lips on hers as she did. Completely shocked, she tried to push him away with all her strength, but he was too strong for her. After a few more moments, the man stepped back, a confused look on his face.

"What's wrong with you?" he asked, keeping her firmly against the wall.

"What's wrong with me? What on earth are you doing? Let go of me, Malfoy," she yelled at him.

"Oh, so it's Malfoy now, then? It was Draco just a few weeks ago. How about you make up your mind already?" he said, sneering.

"What are you talking about?"

"You were supposed to meet me over a week ago, where have you been?"

"Meet you?" she asked, too confused to fight anymore.

"Yes, meet me. You were supposed to get me the information on the prisoners, remember?"

She looked at him, shocked; she couldn't believe what he was saying. Was it possible? Was Draco Malfoy her informant? Why the hell had he kissed her?

"Didn't Severus tell you I was looking for you?" he asked then.

"Snape?"

"Well, of course, Snape. What's going on?"

"We had a meeting? We were working together?" she asked slowly.

"That's what I said, isn't it? Hermione, what's wrong with you?"

"If you had been working with me, then how come you don't know?" she asked, shocked at his use of her name.

"Don't know what?"

"About the explosion."

"What explosion?" he asked, sounding worried.

"I was attacked by Death Eaters. I don't remember anything about the last few months." He looked at her for a second, as if he wasn't sure she was telling the truth.

"But surely you remember me," he said, and leaned closer to kiss her again, but when she moved her head to the side, he frowned. "You really don't remember?" he asked, and she shook her head. "Not even this?" he asked, and kissed her neck softly, sending shivers down her spine.

"Malfoy, stop," she said, pushing him away.

"'Mione? Where are you?" came Harry's voice from the main street. They were looking for her.

"Potter," Malfoy muttered under his breath, and stepped away from her. "Go back to your friends, and ask them what you had been doing these last few months, but don't tell anyone you've seen me. If you decide you believe me, meet me at the Leaky Cauldron in two days, around ten. Come alone," he said, and then turned around and walked away, hiding his face again.

Her legs were still shaking slightly as she walked back into the Alley, trying to look calm as she called Harry's name.

"Did you see her?" a voice asked from the darkness.

"Yes," Draco answered.

"Is what he said true? Has she been Obliviated?"

"Yes," he repeated.

"Did she believe you? Does she think she had been working with you?" the voice asked again, sounding delighted.

"I think so. I asked her to meet me in a few days, so I guess we will know for sure soon."

"Good. Go have some rest now, you look positively awful," the voice said disdainfully, and without another word he Apparated away.


	34. old resentments

She had gone up to her bedroom as soon as they got back from Diagon Alley, claiming she didn't feel well, but she actually wanted some time alone to think.

Well, they had told her she had been working with someone else, and now it seemed she knew who it was. Malfoy? She could hardly believe she would have trusted him, no matter what he said.

Then again, she never would have guessed she would have trusted Snape either, not after all he'd done. Some very strange things had happened that summer, and she wasn't sure what to think of it. She had always been the brainy one, thinking things over and over, never wanting to do anything rushed, so she probably had had good reasons to trust them. She just wondered what it had been.

There was something that didn't fit, though. Why had Malfoy kissed her? He had always hated her, and she had hated him back. He was arrogant, and a bully, and a damned Death Eater! He had called her by her name, like they were close, and hadn't looked as repulsed to see her as he always had. What on earth had she been up to those months?

"Ginny?" she asked, as the girl entered the bedroom.

"What?" she said, closing the door behind her.

"I wanted to ask you something," said Hermione, as she sat up on the bed.

"About what?"

"Well, I've been trying to remember what happened to me, the things I've forgotten, and I wanted to ask you…"

"Ask me what?" said Ginny, now clearly interested.

"Do you know if I was… well, seeing someone?"

"You remember?" Ginny asked, shocked, and Hermione felt her heart beat faster. Had she really been going out with someone?

"Not really," she answered, "I just had the feeling…"

"Well, you were," she answered grinning, "'though I don't know who it was."

"Why not?"

"Well, you never told me. I found out when you came home one night with a hickey on your neck. I even had to cover it up when you snuck out to see him a few times. I guess you just didn't want Ron to find out or something."

"Why didn't you tell me before?"

"Whoever he was, he didn't come looking for you or visited when you were unconscious, so I figured you had either broken up, or he was an idiot not worthy of your time. I didn't see any reason to upset you over it."

"Oh," she merely replied, lying back on the bed. "And who did visit?" she asked, as an afterthought.

"Well, most of the Order stopped by, at least once. Harry, Ron and I, of course, we spent lots of time there and the rest of the family, too. The ones that surprised me the most were Kingsley and Remus, they seemed really worried. Then Snape, but that was weird. I found him there a few times, but he never spoke to anyone and always left as soon as someone showed up."

"He did?"

"Yes, but you know Snape; he's weird, so I don't know why it should surprise us," she muttered, as she climbed into her bed.

"Yes, I guess you're right," she said, before putting the lights out.

She didn't get much rest that night, her mind busy trying to sort all the new information out. She was sure Snape knew the truth, but she didn't think she could just talk him into telling her anything else.

Morning found her still confused, and there was only one thing that helped her when she felt that way. She needed to talk to her parents.

She stretched and got up from bed, walking to her desk, where she saw a small roll of parchment. Something wasn't right, it was the same letter she had sent her parents a few days earlier.

As she walked down the stairs and into the kitchen, the parchment still in her hand, she saw most of the Weasleys, Harry and Remus already there, having breakfast. They greeted her as she entered, but when she stopped by the door, some of them looked at her with curiosity.

"What's up?" Ron asked, between mouthfuls.

"I sent a letter to my parents a few days ago," she said, and saw Harry, Ron and Remus pale.

"Well, we wanted to talk to you about that," said Harry. "We were just waiting for the right time."

"What's there to talk about?" she asked, feeling worried. She had only wanted to ask them if the Order had moved her parents to a safe house, like they had discussed a few times, but with the way they reacted,

"After you were attacked," said Remus, "we tried to contact your parents, but they weren't home. It actually looked like they hadn't been there for weeks. We tried to find them, but to no avail."

"What?" she asked, just as someone walked past her. She didn't even turn as Charlie walked into the kitchen and sat next to his sister. "You can't find my parents? You were supposed to protect them!"

"Hermione, please," Harry said, trying to calm her down. "It's just a matter of time before we find them."

"Oh, Merlin, what if Voldemort has them? What if they're hurt or dead?" she muttered her eyes wide with fear. Only then, as she looked at everyone in the room, did she notice Charlie's eyes on her, firmly shaking his head no, leaning back in the chair so the others wouldn't notice. She frowned and opened her mouth to ask, but he moved a finger to his lips, asking her to keep quiet.

"I'm sure they're alright," Ron said reassuringly. If the Death Eaters had them, we would know by now. Maybe they just went on vacation, and you forgot they had told you," he said, unconvincingly.

Charlie got up from his chair then, and walked back out of the kitchen. He gave her a meaningful look as he passed her, and then she heard his loud footsteps up the stairs. It was a good thing everyone else was too focused on her to notice him leave just a few minutes after walking in.

"I think I'll go change now," she muttered, still wearing her nightgown, "and then I want to know exactly what you have been doing to try and find them." With that, she turned around and walked back up the stairs.

Charlie was waiting for her there, leaning against her bedroom door.

"Do you know something they don't?" she asked, as she reached them.

"Not here," he muttered, as he opened the door to her bedroom and stepped inside.

"What is it," she asked, sitting on her bed as he closed the door again and leaned against it.

"Your parents are safe," he said, clearly not wanting her to worry any more.

"How do you know?"

"One night, after an attack, I saw you sneaking into the house. It was already morning, so you had been out the whole night. You told me you were worried about your parents' safety, and that you had moved them somewhere safe."

"Then why didn't the others know about it?"

"You didn't want them to. You said you'd feel better if you were the only one who knew, I guess you had your reasons, but that's all you told me."

"Why didn't you tell me before?"

"Well, I wasn't here before, remember? I just came back for the wedding. And quite frankly, I didn't remember until now."

"But of no one else knows where they are…"

"All that secrecy isn't always a good idea."

"I have to find them," she said, getting up and walking to the door.

"Just let me know if there's anything I can do to help," he said, opening the door for her and following her out.

It turned out they had been doing quite a lot to find her parents, Kingsley had even talked to some people at the Ministry. If they hadn't found them yet, it meant they were very well protected.

She decided not to tell anyone she had been the one to send them away. She didn't see how that information could help find them, and wasn't sure how she would explain her actions if they found out.

So another day went by, with her sitting in the library, now not only researching on memory spells, but also on tracking charms. As she went to bed that night, she wondered if she should meet Malfoy the next day. It seemed foolish, but maybe, if what he said had really happened, and she had trusted him that much, he might know where her parents were, or how to find them.

She had spent the entire next day trying to decide what to do, and as the hour approached, she put her cloak on, and then took it off, at least a dozen times, as she changed her mind, from going to see him to staying safely at home. She didn't trust him, and wouldn't be surprised if he Apparated her straight to Voldemort himself, but she also wanted answers. Where was her Gryffindor courage? She was sure she was more powerful than he was, no matter how many dark curses he had learned, so what was there to be afraid of, really? She would be ready for anything, and would simply disarm him at the first opportunity, so there wasn't much to lose, but a lot to gain.

Well, that was it; she had finally made up her mind. Putting her cloak back on, she silently crept down the stair and out of headquarters. She Apparated in front of the Leaky Cauldron, stepped inside, and took a moment to look around, to see if he was already there.

"You came," she heard a voice she knew all too well whisper behind her, and she turned around, wand ready by her side.

"I want answers," she told him firmly, going straight to the point as she turned to face him. He was wearing a long cloak, his face hidden under the hood again, but she didn't need to see him to know who he was.

"Come," he said, walking to the door; after a few seconds, she decided to follow him.

"Where are you going?" she asked him as soon as they stepped back out of the tavern.

"_We_," he answered, "are going somewhere we can talk without risking being found or overheard."

"Where?" she asked, and as soon as the words left her lips, he wrapped his hand around her wrist firmly and Apparated them away.

The moment he let go of her hand, she turned around to face him, wand pointing straight to his chest.

"Drop your wand," she commanded firmly, before he had time to raise it.

"What?"

"Drop. Your. Wand," she repeated slowly, a few sparks shooting from the tip of her wand when he didn't do as told.

"Put that down, woman. Merlin, what is wrong with you?" he said, his face still hidden under the hood.

"If I have to say it again, I will disarm you myself and then call the Aurors," she said firmly. "Now do it."

With a sigh, he finally dropped the wand by her feet, and she kicked it to the side.

"Where are we?" she asked, looking around.

"Oh, come on, we've been here lots of times," he said, and she looked around. They were in a small wooden cabin, but it didn't even look familiar. Her eyes flicked to the window for a moment, but it was too dark outside to see anything. She saw movement from the corner of her eye, and turned to him again, just as he stepped closer.

"Stay where you are," she warned him.

"How can you not remember this place?" he asked, taking another step closer, but stopped as a few more sparks shot from her wand.

"Was it here where we met?" she asked.

"Yes, among other things," he said suggestively, but he ignored his comment.

"Sit."

"Always had great manners, love," he said, but sat down by the small table all the same.

"Why did you bring me here?" she asked, as she sat in front of him.

"If you really can't remember, then I thought you'd want answers, and I have a few questions myself," he said, as he lowered the hood, and she gasped as she saw his face.

"What's happened to you?" she asked, noticing the dark circles around his eyes, and the paleness of his skin. He also looked much too thin, as if he hadn't had a proper meal in months.

"Merlin, will we have to go through all of this again?" he asked with a sigh, but still answered. "All right then. After that night at Hogwarts, the night Dumbledore died, I was forced to go back to the Dark Lord. He wasn't pleased with me, and decided keeping me locked up in the dungeons for weeks would be more fun than to kill me."

"He locked you up?" she asked.

"Yes. It was a good way to make sure he would have my family's 'assistance' in anything he wanted. If my mother hadn't managed to sneak to the dungeons every few days with some food, I would have died there."

She looked at him for a few moments, remembering what he had looked like the last time she'd seen him. "You said we were working together," she said, and he nodded. "How did it happen?"

"Well, I had been shackled in the dungeons for weeks, when one night the door opened and the Death Eaters brought someone in. It was too dark to see who."

"Was it me?" she asked, but he ignored her question and continued speaking, a faraway look on his eyes.

"Less than an hour later Severus came back. He told me he could get me out of there, but I had to tell the Dark Lord you and I were involved, and that I had fooled you into passing me information. I told him there was no way anyone would believe I would go anywhere near a Mudblood," he said, a disdainful look on his face she knew too well. "He said father would tell the Dark Lord the same thing, told me mother had convinced him to lie to his Master, and he would do it."

"Did he believe it?"

"Will you stop interrupting?" he said, exasperated, but then continued as if nothing had happened. "Severus said you would never believe him if he was the one that talked to you, so he woke you up and left before you could see him. I explained the situation, you refused to do it, we argued, and finally you realized I was right, as usual, and it was the only way we could both get out of there alive."

"So that's how it happened?" she asked, more to herself than to him.

"Now that I answered your question, you answer one of mine. What did Severus say when he found out you'd lost your memories?"

"He said I was better off that way," she snorted, laying the wand on the table, but with her fingers still wrapped around it.

"And what did your friends say? Did they know about me?"

"I had told them I had been working with someone," she answered, still not sure she should trust him. "Why didn't Snape tell you what had happened to me?"

"What do you know about what happened with him these last few months?"

She looked at him, uncertain, but finally decided to answer. Well, at least partly. "All they told me was he convinced the Order he was on our side, and they let him back in."

"He had been giving me information on the Dark Lord's plans, so that I would tell you," he said, "but I don't think he's really with the Order."

"What?" she asked, feeling confused.

"I think he just did it to get back inside the Order, but he's still loyal to the Dark Lord."

"And what about you?" she asked, and he snorted.

"That bastard left me to die; he abused my family, even tortured my mother just to punish my father. I want him dead, just like you."

"And why should I believe you?"

"Why should you believe me?" he asked, with a hint of anger in his voice. He stood up, and so did she, her wand to his chest once more as he stepped closer.

"Stay where you are."

"Put the wand down," he said firmly, moving even closer.

"No."

"Put. It. Down," he repeated, and before she knew what was happening, he had his fingers wrapped around her wrist, pushing her arm to the side as he stood inches away from her. "Don't ever point your wand at me again, Granger," he said, and pushed her to the wall.

"Malfoy, stop," she said, trying to push him away, but he was too strong.

"I have proven my loyalties to you more than once, and am willing to do it again, given what has happened to you, but I won't have you treating me like that," he said, his body flush against hers as he whispered by her ear. "We've been through a lot together; don't ruin it all because of old resentments."

"I don't know what you're talking about."

"Don't lie to me, love, you know you can't fool me. I'm sure you already know about us, at least the basics," he said, and moved to kiss her neck.

"Stop it," she said, but he just kept on. He pushed his thigh between her legs then, softly rubbing against her through her jeans.

"How can you not remember?" he whispered again, and she could feel him hard against her thigh.

"This can't be true. We would never…" she said, but he kissed her before she could finish. It was a strange feeling, suddenly familiar. The cabin, a man kissing her. No matter how hard the voice of reason screamed in her head, she begun to wonder if what he was saying was true.

After a few moments, when she still didn't respond to the kiss, he pulled back.

"I felt the same way when it started," he said, as their eyes locked, "but it also felt right," he finished, and finally stepped away. "I guess you'll just need some time," he said, as he reached for his wand, still lying on the floor. She didn't try to stop him, didn't even move from the spot where he had left her. "Here," he said, taking something out of his pocket and tapping it with his wand.

"What is it?" she asked, outstretching her hand.

"I'm sure you already know," he said, handing her a golden Galleon. "You were, after all, the one that gave it to me."

"The Protean Charm," she muttered, looking at the Galleon more closely.

"We used them to communicate. I figured you wouldn't remember where you'd left yours, so I made you a new one." He frowned at her surprised expression, and said, "I _can_ cast a Protean Charm, you know?"

"You can?" she asked, mocking.

"We had a few changes made, however. It will show the time for a meeting; right there, see?" he said, pointing at one of its corners. "And when the time comes, it will turn into a Portkey, and will take us both somewhere else. We usually met here, but we can also change the place if we need to."

"It's also a Portkey?" she asked.

"My idea, of course," he said, smugly. "Just in case we needed to change location and didn't have time to tell the other. I have to go now, or someone might get suspicious. Keep an eye on Severus, and don't tell him we've met. He can't be trusted."

"I'm still not sure I can trust you either," she told him.

"You will soon," he answered. "And I'll need some information too."

"What?"

"I need to know where the Order is keeping the prisoners. I have to make sure the information Severus gives the Dark Lord isn't real."

"I don't know that," she said, as he started walking to the door.

"I'm sure you can find out," he answered, before Apparating away.

She took a few minutes to go through everything that had happened, but no mater how hard she tried, she couldn't make up her mind on what to think of it. All she knew was she had to find a way get her memories back, and fast.

She silently cursed as she opened the door; the house was so quiet she was sure the screeching sound would wake everyone up. She waited a few moments, half expecting everyone to run down the stairs to see who had made the noise, but nothing happened. Casting a silencing charm on it, she closed it again and tiptoed inside. She was halfway down the hallway when she noticed the flickering lights coming from the library.

Taking a deep breath, she took another step forward, hoping whoever was inside wouldn't notice her, but she wasn't so lucky.

"Where have you been?" Harry's voice called. She sighed and walked into the library to find him sitting next to Ron, both looking at her intently.


	35. tingle

"We were worried," Ron added, as she finally sat in front of them.

"I just needed some fresh air, needed to get out of here a few hours."

"Are you keeping things from us again?" Harry asked.

"I'm not keeping anything from you, and if I did before, you know very well I can't remember." They looked at each other for a moment, frowning, but then turned back to her.

"The night you were attacked, we were about to leave," said Harry.

"Leave?"

"Horcrux hunting," Ron explained.

"But we were supposed to leave much sooner than that," she said confused.

"Well, you asked us to wait some time and we did. By the time we decided to leave, well, you know what happened to you..."

"So, we never left?"

"No, but we think we should," Harry answered.

"Look, we've got something to show you," Ron said, before she had time to say anything. She watched him as he reached inside his pocket, and retrieved and old locket.

"Isn't that…?" she said, frowning, as she took a closer look. "Isn't that the locket you found in the cave, with Dumbledore?" she asked, turning to Harry, and gasped when she saw another locket, just like the one Ron was holding, in Harry's hand.

"No, this is the fake one," Harry said, with a smile. "That's the real one."

"You found one of them?" she asked, surprised.

"We did. Thanks to your potion, of course."

"My potion?"

"Yes, the one you brewed for us. I had run out, but Ginny found a few more bottles in your bedroom. I thought I might just use them, see if I found something worthy, and I did."

"I don't remember any potion, what was it for?"

"Well, to be honest, I didn't really understand the whole explanation," he said, apologetically, "but it worked like the Mirror of Erised, only you could focus on a subject, and see what you desired, related to it."

"Wow, I don't remember ever reading anything like it. So how did you find the locket?"

"In a vision, I saw us cleaning up Sirius' house, that summer we stayed there, and I saw the locket being thrown away with the other stuff. We were hoping Kreacher would have taken it, and so we went to Grimmauld place and asked him. He didn't want to, but had to tell me the truth; thankfully, he had taken it, and was keeping it in his cupboard."

"Have you…?"

"Yes, we destroyed it; it's not a Horcrux anymore," Harry answered, guessing what she had wanted to ask.

"How?"

"Well, since basilisk poison worked with the Diary, we thought we could try it again," Ron explained.

"That's not something easy to find."

"Well, it is, if you talk to the right person. It wasn't cheap, but Mundungus got us some."

Her lips parted in surprise, and she slowly turned to Ron, her fingers moving closer to the locket, taking it from his hands to have a better look. As if she was expecting something to jump out of it and attack her, she slowly opened it, and sure enough, there was a hole on the inside, the little crystal definitely broken. It was hard to believe such a small object could have contained something so dangerous and powerful.

"We are leaving, to find the others," said Harry.

"When?"

"Soon."

"Probably in just a couple of days," added Ron.

"Where will we go?" she asked, and noticed both her friends smile broadly at her.

"It's good to know you're still planning on joining us," Harry explained, when she looked at him confused.

"Well, of course I am, I couldn't very well leave the two of you alone. Merlin knows you would be back within the week, begging for my help," she said, smirking.

"No way," Ron retorted, feigning outrage.

"That's right, we would be too ashamed to come back," Harry said, and they all laughed.

"Well, if we are leaving in just a couple of days, then we should get some rest, and start packing in the morning. I'll make a list f all the things we could need."

"That's our girl," Harry laughed, and they all walked up the stairs and into their respective bedrooms.

Her bed was covered in books and clothes as she tried to decide what she needed to take with her. She had been at it since first thing that morning, Reducing things and carefully placing them in her magically expanded bag, only to take them back out and spelling them to their original size next.

She heard the door open behind her, and turned around to find Harry peering inside.

"Charlie and the twins are here; we're playing Quidditch, do you want to join us?" he asked. "You deserve some rest," he added, when he realized she was about to refuse.

"There are still so many things I need to do," she complained.

"Oh, some on; we're not leaving for another two days, there's still plenty of time," he said, a hopeful smile on his face he knew perfectly well she couldn't resist.

"All right," she finally sighed. "I'll be there in a few minutes."

Without another word, he left at a run, but not a minute had passed before she heard footsteps moving closer again.

"I said I'd be there, just give me five minutes, would you?" she said, slightly irritated, but when he didn't answer, she turned around again to face the door. It wasn't Harry that was standing there.

"Oh, Professor, I'm sorry; I thought you were Harry," she said, but frowned when she noticed his eyes on her bed, looking at the things spread on top of it and her half-full bag with a strange expression.

"What are you doing?" he asked.

"What does it look like I'm doing? She retorted, surprising herself with her attitude, but the way he was looking at her, and at the bed, made her feel uncomfortable.

"Well, it looks like you are packing," he answered coldly, "But surely you are not fool enough to even consider leaving this place."

"I can take care of myself," she said, reducing another book and throwing it in her bag."

"Oh course, how could I forget?" he mocked coldly. "I've witness your ability to look after yourself not long ago. I do seem to remember, however, having to bring you back here, barely alive."

"And how do I know it wasn't you who planned the attack?" she blurted out, without thinking, and saw him stiffen at her words.

"I am loyal to the Order, as I have proved many times. And trust me, if I wanted you dead, you would be long gone by now. Will you stop that?" he almost yelled at her, yanking the bag from her fingers when he noticed she had turned back to the table to resume the packing as he spoke.

"Give it back!" she yelled, trying to get the bag from him, but his free hand wrapped around her wrist, stopping her.

There it was again, that damned tingle in her skin, and all she could think of was moving closer to the man standing in front of her. She blinked a few times, trying to clear her head, and then tried to step back, but he didn't let go.

"It's not only your life you are risking by leaving; you know that, don't you?" he asked, but she couldn't bring herself to answer. "The Dark Lord wants all of you dead," he continued, "How long do you think it would take him to find out you are out there unprotected?" he asked. Even though he was sneering down at her, she could see concern in his eyes.

"Well, surely not long, seeing as you already know it. And why do you even care?" she said, trying to free her arm again.

"I care," he said angrily, tightening his hold on her wrist and pulling her a little closer to him, "because if you leave, and he finds out, it will be my neck on the line for not telling him."

"A wizard like you, I'm sure you wouldn't be in much trouble." She couldn't really understand why she was behaving like that; all she knew was that having him so close was making her nervous, and not necessarily in a bad way.

Ever so slowly, her body inched closer, the tingle caused by his touch was driving her crazy, and she felt her gaze darting from his eyes to his lips.

"What are you playing at?" he asked breathlessly, but didn't move.

"I'm not," she answered slowly.

"If they find you, they'll kill you and your friends," he said, in the same breathless tone he had used before. She slowly shook her head no, her lips slightly parted as she simply looked at him. She saw his gaze dart to her lips for a second, but before neither could say anything, they heard loud footsteps moving closer, and Harry's voice calling her name.

"What's taking you so long?" he asked, but stopped dead on his tracks when he reached the open door, shocked at finding Snape still holding her wrist, and standing too close to her; neither had moved at hearing Harry coming closer.

"What's going on?" he asked, and only then did Snape let go of her wrist and step back. She was still too shocked at what had been about to happen to say or do much.

"Nothing," she mumbled, taking her bag from Snape's hand and leaving it on the bed.

"I came to give you this," Snape told her, his hand reaching inside his pocket.

"What is it?" she asked, as she took the vial he offered.

"It's a pain potion. Molly said you were having headaches, and asked me to brew this for you."

"Well, if that's all," Harry interrupted, standing next to Hermione. "The others are waiting," he told her, taking her hand and dragging her out of the room before she could say anything.

A light tap on the window awoke her. Looking at her watch, she saw it was almost midnight. She turned in bed and covered her head with the pillow, but as the tapping persisted, she got up with a groan and walked to the window.

As soon as the window was opened, a small, tawny owl flew inside, going past her and resting on her bed, its leg outstretched so she could take the small parcel tied to it. She stood by the window for a few moments, wondering how an owl she had never seen before had managed to fly through the wards, but then the bird hooted and batted its wings indignantly at having to wait, and she hurried to take the parcel, before Ginny would wake up.

Without wasting a moment, the bird flew back out the window, and she sat on her bed, carefully opening the package. She frowned when she saw a small stone fall from it. "What's this?" she asked to herself, as she reached for the stone again, but the moment she touched it, it glowed, the room spinning around her, and she panicked, as she realized the stone had been a Portkey.

She fell with a loud thud in the middle of a darkened room, and looked around, eyes narrowing as she tried to see if there was anyone else. Slowly and silently, she got up, and tiptoed closer to the wall. She saw a flash of light then, just a few feet away from where she had been before, and then two figures fell to the floor, groaning loudly. She didn't have her wand, so there wasn't much she could do, other than wait and find out what was going on.

"Are you all right?" she heard one of the figures say, and she instantly recognized it.

"Dad?" she asked, shocked.

"Hermione?"

"Hermione, where are you, sweetie?" her mother asked, and Hermione ran forwards, hugging her tightly.

"Are you ok, honey?"

"I missed you so much," she said, and then, as her eyes adjusted to the dark, she looked up at her parents. "How did you get here?"

"Your friend did it. With that teacup over there," she said, pointing at the cup lying on the floor, close to the little stone that had taken her there.

"My friend?"

"Oh, that's right, he said you didn't remember. What happened to you? Are you all right?" her father asked, worriedly.

"I'm fine, it wasn't serious. I've been looking for you two for days, I was so worried."

"Didn't he tell you where we were?"

"Who?"

"Well, I don't know who he is, and he always wears that mask when he visits," her mother explained.

"But what happened? Why did you move?"

"Well, one night…" her mother started, but her father interrupted.

"Maybe we shouldn't be telling her this; he asked us not to."

"What? No, please, you have to tell me what you know," she begged.

"But he said you'd be safer."

"Please, I'm tired of people keeping things from me, because they think they know what's best for me. I need to know."

"You just showed up one night at home, with him, and you both dragged us out of the house. You said someone was there for us," her mother said, before her husband could interrupt her.

"They attacked you?" she asked, shocked.

"Yes," she answered, and told her a few other details of that night. "Then you took us somewhere else, and told us we couldn't go back home. We spent the night there, and in the morning, you gave us one of those transporting thingies and it took us to another house, which is where we are living now."

"Where?"

"We don't know, we can't go out, but he left a house elf to help us, and he visits often, to make sure we have everything we need."

"And you don't know who he is?" she asked them, but they shook their heads.

"I told you he always wears that mask, and we never heard his name."

"Is there anything you can tell me about him? Anything at all?"

"Well, he is tall, and rather quiet," her mother answered.

She was about to ask something else, but a strange glow coming from the floor distracted her. As she looked around, she noticed the cup was shining orange, and her stone blue.

"That means we only have ten more minutes," his father said, and hugged her. "You can come with us," he said, hopefully.

"You know I can't, dad. But I'm glad to know you are safe."

"Take care of yourself, honey," her mother said, as she hugged her too.

"You too. I'm sure this will all be over soon, and we'll be together at home again."

"When will we see you again?"

"Soon, I promise. I'll talk to my friend, see what we can do," she answered.

"I think it's time," her father said, as both the cup and the stone glowed brighter.

"I'll miss you," she said, hugging them both again.

"We'll miss you too, sweet heart. Make sure you stay out of trouble," her father said, making her laugh slightly.

The three of them reached for the Portkeys, and just as she felt the tug in her belly, she smiled at them, and muttered, "I love you."

As soon as her feet hit solid ground again, she took the coin Draco had given her, and tapped it with her wand, asking him to meet her right away. Concentrating hard on the cabin he had taken her the last time, she closed her eyes and Apparated there. She had been pacing around for almost half an hour, thinking about what her parents had told her, before he Apparated there.

"This better be important, love. Do you know what time it is?" Draco said, as he walked through the door to the cabin, but before he had time to say anything else, she launched herself at him, hugging him tightly.

"You saved my parents, thank you," she muttered by his ear, so distracted she didn't even notice him stiffen slightly at her words, as he wrapped his arms around her waist.

"My pleasure, love," he said noncommittally.

"You don't know how much they mean to me," she said, her arms still tightly around him.

"I do know how important family can be," he answered, and she pulled back.

"Your family."

"What about them?"

"They are still with Voldemort," she said, and he cringed at hearing the name.

"They are," he answered simply.

"If you came to the Order, maybe they could help them out. Your mother at least," she said, and noticed a change in his expression. He seemed surprised at her words, touched, but it was gone in an instant.

"I can't take the risk," he answered, barely above a whisper. "If he suspected I was…" he trailed off, and took a deep breath. "He would kill them, and then kill me as well."

"It doesn't have to be like this," she said softly, surprised at seeing emotion in his usually cold eyes.

"I have to go, or they will notice I'm gone," he said, turning around and leaving right away, not giving her a chance to respond.

"What did the girl want?" the cold voice asked, as soon as he Apparated back.

"Nothing important; the stupid mudblood just couldn't sleep, and wanted to ask me about the weeks she's forgotten, about our 'meetings'," he answered.

"And what did you tell her?"

"Exactly what you told me to," he retorted, just as coldly.

"This will have to go faster; I need to know where they are keeping him."

"If I push too much, she'll know something is wrong."

"Then make sure you distract her, so she won't notice," the voice said. "Go inside now, your mother was looking for you."


	36. Godric's Hollow

It was dark outside, and everyone in the house was asleep except for the three of them, of course.

She left a short letter explaining they had left, but were all right, on her bed, and then tiptoed down the stairs, shoes in hand as to not make any noise.

"Are you ready?" she asked, as she reached the bottom of the stairs, and they both nodded.

"I'll just leave this," said Harry, an envelope in his hand with Ginny's name carefully written on it, and ran up the stairs once more.

"Mum's going to kill me," muttered Ron, as they waited for Harry to return.

"I'm sure she'll understand, eventually," she said, and had to stifle a laugh at Ron's expression.

"OK, let's go," said Harry, as he walked back down the stairs.

"Got everything you need?" she asked, and when they both nodded, she opened the door and stepped outside.

"So, where to now?" asked Ron, as he closed the door behind them

"Godric's Hollow," answered Harry.

"Hold on tight," she told them, and once they both had their arms firmly around hers, she Apparated them all away.

"I think you got the wrong place," said Ron, as he let go of her arm, watching the bare mountains in front of him with a frown.

"Turn around, Ronald," she said, sternly.

"Oh," was all he managed, as the three of them faced the small town lying between the mountains. "Why did you Apparate us so far away?" he complained, after a few minutes, breaking the silence.

"We can't very well Apparate mid-town, someone might recognize Harry," she explained. "Do you want to go alone?" she softly asked Harry, and he just shook his head no, lost in thought.

She waited a few more minutes, and then decided it was time to move. She reached inside Harry's bag, pulled his Invisibility Cloak out, and then handed it to him.

"Here, put this on," she said, and then slowly they made their way down the mountainside, and towards Godric's Hollow. She didn't think anyone would recognize them, but still thought it would be better if Harry hid under the Cloak. Just in case.

The streets were deserted; even the small pub on the main street was almost empty. They walked in silence, and she only spoke every few minutes to call Harry's name and make sure he was still around.

It wasn't long until they reached the gates to a cemetery, and she almost bumped into Harry as she moved closer, not able to see he had stopped walking. The cloak fell to the ground, but he didn't seem to mind; he didn't even seem to notice.

She stood still as she watched Harry push the gates open and walk inside the cemetery, and stopped Ron when he tried to follow, shaking her head when he turned towards her, confused.

They had used the cloak to cover themselves as they waited for Harry to return, using the time to discuss what they should do, where they would go next. Almost an hour went by before Harry came back. He still looked a little dazed, as he closed the gates again, and walked slowly towards them, but smiled faintly when they took of the cloak and he was able to see them.

"Are you all right?" she asked him, and he nodded. "Do you want to try and find the house?"

"OK," he answered automatically, and they started walking.

"It should be this way," Hermione said, pointing at a small side street. When she noticed they were looking at her, she sighed and explained. "A few months ago, just a few days after we came back from Hogwarts, I asked Remus where your parents had lived. Here, I have a map," she said, reaching inside her bag and pulling it out. "What? She asked, when she noticed they were still staring at her. "We couldn't just start knocking on doors, asking where James and Lily Potter had lived, could we now?" Come on, it's down this way," she said, walking ahead of them.

They hadn't really expected to find the house there, but were still surprised its ruins still remained. It looked as if they hadn't changed a thing since the explosion, the night Lily and James died. They stood in front of the tall, iron gate, and looked ahead. She heard Harry take a deep breath as he stood beside her, and she took his hand. She could only imagine what he must have been going through, watching the one place where he had known family, and happiness, thinking what could have been, had things gone differently. He squeezed her hand tightly, after a few moments, and she turned to face him.

"I'm ready," he said, a determined look on his face, his eyes still fixed on what was left of the house. "Let's go."

They had been camping for two days, going yet again through their plans, pulling out maps and books, trying to figure out where the other Horcruxes might be, and how to destroy them. Basilisk poison wasn't exactly easy to find, after all.

Then, one afternoon, while they were lying outside, taking a break, she felt the coin she had been carrying in her pocket heat up. Mumbling something about wanting to check something in one of her books, she quickly stepped inside the tent and took the fake Galleon out of her pocket. The message was short, stating only the time for the meeting, so she guessed they would be meeting at the same place, the cabin in the woods. She was surprised he wanted her to meet him that very night, she hadn't seen him since that night she had seen her parents.

It was a good thing Harry and Ron were rather tired, after a whole day of planning and researching, and they decided to go to bed earlier than usual, that way, they saved her the trouble of making up an excuse to leave.

She got up and paced the cabin again, for what must have been the twentieth time. She had been waiting for almost an hour, and he hadn't shown up yet; she wasn't sure whether she should feel worried or annoyed. She walked to the window, hoping to see something in the dark, when a loud thump made her jump.

"Fuck," Draco muttered, as he pushed the door open and fell to the floor.

"You're late," she said coldly, angry because he had scared her, but forgot it as soon as she took a closer look at him. Hurriedly walking to his side, she helped him up and, although reluctantly, he let her take him to a nearby chair. "What happened to you?" she asked, taking in his face, covered I blood, and his shredded robes.

"What do you think?" he asked, smirking for a moment, and then wincing in pain.

"Oh, shut up," she muttered, as she took a closer look at his wounds. "Did he do this?" she asked, after a few seconds, and they both knew who she was referring to.

"Of course not," he answered with a snort. "I'm not important enough; he just gave the order."

"But why?"

"I'm not giving him any new information, and with Severus back in the Order, I'm hardly useful. Ouch!" he said, wincing and trying to get away from her.

"Would you stop that?" she said, exasperated. "I'm trying to help you here, you know?"

"Well, it hurts."

"Just stop whining and stay still, so I can finish faster," she said, her wand slowly moving over his face, healing the cuts and bruises. "You were working with Snape, right? Why didn't he help you?"

"Because he probably suspects I don't trust him, and doesn't…What are you doing?"

"I'm trying to help you," she sighed. "Now stop moving, so I can get these robes off you and heal your back."

"I love it when you get bossy," he whispered by her ear as she leaned closer to unbutton his robes, and she blushed slightly, but didn't let him distract her.

It took her over ten minutes to heal all the cuts, and he hadn't stopped complaining once. She was glad she had finished, another minute and she would be the one causing the wounds instead of healing them.

"I have to give him something," he muttered, standing up and turning to her as he buttoned his robes.

"I don't have any information."

"Did you find out where the prisoners are?" he asked, and she shook her head. "Isn't there anything you can get from the Order without Severus knowing?"

"I haven't seen anyone from the Order in days."

He looked at her for a moment, as if he was about to say something else, but then sighed and walked to the window.

"If I don't contact you again, remember to keep an eye on Severus. He will betray you all if you give him the chance," he said, looking out of the cabin.

"Tell him we've left," she said, after a few moments of silence.

"What?"

"He will find out soon enough, anyway, and it will be a good thing, if it keeps him away from the rest of the Order," she mumbled.

"What are you talking about?"

"Ron, Harry and me, we've left the Order. We think they'll be safer if we stay away."

"Why would you think that?"

"Well, Harry is the main target, isn't he?"

"But where…?"

"We're just moving around," she said, before he could finish asking.

"If I tell him that…"

"He should leave you alone, at least for the time being," she interrupted.

"He'll start looking for you, if he knows you're unprotected."

"We'll be fine."

"Why are you doing this?" he asked, turning to her again.

"You've helped me, it's only fair," she answered, with a shrug.

"You're putting yourself in danger," he said, as he stepped closer.

"Nothing new there," she said, dismissively. "You don't have to go back, you know?" she said, after a few moments.

"Yes, I do."

"You could go to the Order, they could protect you."

"They would never help me, and even if they did, it would mean my family would be killed."

"You could bring them too."

"Thank you," he said, with a half smile, "but I can't do that. All I can do is help your side defeat him, and then hope I won't be sent to Azkaban, or worse."

"It doesn't have to be this way," she muttered, but he didn't answer.

"Yes, it does," he said, with a sad smile, and then leaned closer and brushed his lips against hers. It only lasted a second, and she didn't even have time to react. "I should go now," he said, walking to the door. "He'll be looking for you now, so be careful," he said, thanking her again before opening the door and Apparating away.

She didn't tell Harry or Ron about Malfoy, of course, but made sure protective charms and wards were always in place, and in the last three days they had already moved twice. They were starting to think she was paranoid, but she preferred that to actually having to explain the truth.

Ever since that night she had seen her parents again, she had redoubled her efforts at trying to find a way to remember, and after almost a week, she decided it was time to do something more than research.

The idea had been in the back of her mind for some time, ever since she had heard about the potion she had supposedly brewed for Harry so he could find the Horcruxes.

It had been curiosity at first; she hadn't ever read about anything like it, and as good as she was at Potions, she just doubted she could simply come up with something like that, especially in just a few months. But the last few days, however, she had started wondering what would happen if she took it. If it worked with Harry, showing him things he couldn't remember otherwise, then why not with her? The memories were already there, after all.

So she made her decision. There were still a few bottles left, and she would only try once, so there would still be enough for Harry. He had told her he had to focus on what he wanted to see, and then take the potion, but focusing on something she couldn't remember wasn't easy.

Faking a yawn, she got up and went to her bedroom, leaving the boys at the table, quietly playing Wizard Chess. She went over the things she knew about the last two months, which weren't many, and then focused on the very last thing she could remember, a warm afternoon, and her walking to headquarters for a meeting.

Taking a deep breath, she sat down on the bed, the small bottle firmly in her hand. Harry had told her it had taken a few tries before he managed to see something useful, but she would only try it once, so she took a few more minutes to concentrate before uncorking the bottle and drinking the potion. Not a moment had passed before she fell back on the bed, eyes closed. She didn't see the light in the tent turn red, warning them someone was trying to break through the wards.

Harry and Ron did notice, however, and were on their feet in an instant, wands raised, ready to attack whoever was trying to get in. With a wave of his wand, Harry dimmed the lights, and then motioned for Ron to step to the side, so they would be in a better position to both attack the intruders and defend themselves.

They felt the whole tent shake around them, as the different wards started to fall.

"Wait until the door opens," Harry whispered to Ron, who nodded in return.

The shaking got worse, things started falling to the ground, and then it suddenly stopped. Another moment and the door was thrown open, a figure standing there, wand ready.

"Expelliarmus," Harry yelled, just as Ron yelled "Impedimenta," but the figure screamed "Protego," in the very last second, barely being pushed a few steps back by the force of the spells.

"Don't fire," the figure said then, raising both hands.

"Who are you?" Harry asked, and the figure by the door pushed back the hood covering his face.

"Malfoy?" Ron asked, and then yelled "Expelliarmus," but Draco deflected it easily this time.

"Where is she?" he asked then.

"Who?"

"Hermione, I need to talk to her," answered.

"You're not going anywhere near her. How did you get here?" Harry asked, a few sparks flying from his wand.

"That's not important, we don't have time," he answered briskly. "The others are coming."

"What are you talking about?"

"Death Eaters, they've found out were you are, and are on their way."

"And what, they sent you ahead?" Ron asked, stepping closer menacingly.

"I would have thought you would have figured it out by now, Weasel. I'm her contact, the one that's been working with her."

"How do we know that's true?"

"I already told you, there's not time for stupid questions, they'll be here any minute. Now, where is she?" he asked, and at that very moment they hear her cry out loudly. Harry turned around and ran to the bedroom, but as Draco tried to follow, Ron stopped him.

"You stay right where you are," he said in a low voice, standing between him and her bedroom door.

"Ron, come here," Harry yelled after a few moments, and he did, Harry's worried tone making him forget all about Malfoy. "I can't get her to wake up," he yelled, as Ron reached him. He was shaking Hermione, but she just kept screaming.

"What did she take?" Draco asked, as he stood beside them and reached for the empty bottle lying on the floor.

"Oh, damn," Harry muttered, calling her name as he tried to wake her up.

"Just let go of her, there's no time for that."

"Shut it, ferret," Ron said angrily.

"When they come, they have to find you here, or they'll know someone warned you. Just stay here, throw a few hexes at them, and then get away from this place. They'll set anti-Apparition wards, but you could use a Portkey," he muttered, as he walked around the room, trying to find something suitable. "You do know how to make one, right?" he asked, as he walked back to them. Harry had turned to him, a slightly surprised look on his face now, and he nodded.

"I'll take her with me," Draco said then, pointing his wand at one of her books, and muttering, "Portus," and stopped them as they were about to protest. "If it gets out of hand, do you really want her here? She is helpless like this," he said, kneeling beside her. "I'll take her to you as soon as she wakes up. I expect she will know where to find you?" he asked, and Harry nodded; Ron was still by her side, trying to wake her up.

They heard loud noises outside, the lights turning red again, and Harry and Ron stood up, looking from Hermione to Draco, as if trying to decide what to do. They were saved the trouble when Draco reached for Hermione's bag, then took her arm and touched the Portkey.


	37. memory charms

She couldn't open her eyes, but felt the tug in her belly that signalled Apparition. She could hear noises around her, but they were too faint. Someone was screaming, and she wasn't sure it wasn't her. She felt something hard and cold against her lips, and tried to move her head away, but her body wouldn't respond. A dense liquid burned down her throat, and she spluttered and coughed, but after a few seconds the pain seemed to lessen, and the screaming stopped.

She opened her mouth and took a deep breath, as if she had been drowning seconds before.

"Hermione?" a voice asked softly from somewhere nearby, and she tried to respond, but her throat was too dry, and still burned a bit. "Are you awake?" he asked again, for it was clearly a man's voice. She nodded and regretted it instantly, the movement bringing the pain back.

"Here," the voice said, his hand behind her head, helping her up as he put a glass by her lips. "Drink," he ordered firmly, and when she didn't, he sighed in exasperation, tilting the glass as he said, "It's just a potion for the pain."

Well, if he wanted to hurt her, why would he bother saying it was for the pain? She thought to herself, and hesitantly took a sip.

She heard him call a name, something that sounded like Pippy, or Mippy, or maybe Dippy, and a shrill voice that could only belong to a House elf answered, "Yes, Master."

"Get me the red and the purple vials from the other room," he ordered, and heard the faint footsteps leave the room and return after a few moments. "If anyone should ask, you never saw me here, or her either, understood?" he commanded firmly, and the elf squeaked in fright and answered, "Yes, young Master Malfoy, sir," before a loud pop told her it had left.

"Malfoy?" she asked, opening her eyes and trying to get up.

"Don't," he said firmly, pushing her back against the couch by her shoulders.

"Where am I?" she asked, her voice still hoarse.

"We are in a vacation villa my family owns, but we haven't used it in years, so I doubt they will find us."

"Why am I here?" she asked then. The last thing she could remember was sitting on her bed in the tent, and taking the potion. "Harry and Ron," she said, suddenly alarmed, turning to the door, as if expecting them to burst in any second. "Where are they? What's happened?"

"I'm sure they are just fine, you can go to them as soon as you recover."

"I can go now," she said, trying to get up, but he would have none of it.

"Stay right where you are," he said, firmly, pushing her back again. "You are in no condition to Apparate anywhere."

"How did I get here?" she asked, and he shook his head.

"Oh, no, love, you've asked enough questions already. It's my turn now," he said. "What is this?" he asked then, showing her the bottle she knew had held the potion.

The potion. She had taken it to remember, but why hadn't it worked? Harry had told her that, even when he hadn't seen what he wanted to, it had always shown him something. She closed her eyes and tried to remember. She had sat down on the bed, and had drunk the contents of the small bottle Draco was holding right now. It had been half full, and Harry had told her the whole bottle was enough for two attempts, so she knew she hadn't taken too much. Everything had gone dark for a moment, and then she had seen herself walking down Diagon Alley, the last thing she could remember.

She had moved around in the memory, following her other self as she looked at the people passing by. Two figures caught her attention only a few seconds later. Why would someone wear cloaks and even cover their heads with hoods, on a sunny afternoon? She had watched them walk past her memory self, and saw her stiffen and turn around to watch them too. she frowned and tried to step closer to them, but as she did, everything went black again, and she screamed in pain, feeling as if someone was drilling her brain, like her whole head was about to explode.

"Hey," Draco said, snapping his fingers in front of her face, bringing her back to reality. "What's this?" he repeated.

"Looks like a bottle," she said, trying to get up again.

"Stay right where you are, or I'll tie you to the couch, though it's not much of a threat, seeing as how much you enjoyed it last time," he said, with a wicked smile, making her flush instantly as she lay back again, avoiding his eyes. "Now, answer the question," he said, rising the bottle again.

He didn't know? If she had trusted him so much, then why hadn't she told him about the potion? And what else did he ignore?

"It was just an experimental potion," she lied, and when he raised an eyebrow questioningly, she continued with a sigh, "It was supposed to make our magic stronger, but it obviously didn't work."

"You could have gotten yourself hilled, what were you thinking, experimenting like that?"

"You still haven't answered my question. Why am I here?"

"The Dark Lord found out where you were, and send his Death Eaters after you. I got there first, to warn you, and found you lying on your bed, unconscious and screaming in pain. We couldn't wake you up, so I brought you here. Potter and Weasley stayed behind, so the Death Eaters wouldn't know you had been warned.

"They stayed there?" she asked worriedly. "I have to find them, have to make sure they are all right," she said, and this time he didn't stop her as she got up.

"Calm down," he said, when she swayed a little, from getting up so fast, and handed her one of the flasks the elf had brought him. When she hesitated and took a closer look, he said impatiently, "It's just some Pepper Up Potion."

She drank the potion he had given her and looked around the room for the first time, only then noticing she was in a big library. She saw her bag on the floor, and her wand lying on top of it. She quickly took the wand, and was about to Disapparate when his hand on her arm stopped her.

"Don't," he said, seriously, turning her to face him. "You can't Apparate in or out of here unless you are with a Malfoy, and if I lift the wards they will know it."

"So you are telling me I'm stuck here?"

"No, I'm telling you we are going together. Now wait here until I come back, and then we can go find those idiots you call friends," he said, stepping out of the room and locking the door behind him.

It didn't look like she had any choice but wait, and so, with a sigh, she walked over to the wall, her eyes going through the titles of the books it held.

They all seemed to be related to Dark Magic, charms, curses, potions, creatures… just about everything and anything one could think of. As she moved over to the last bookshelf, she gasped loudly, her eyes glued to a small book with golden letters on it. Memory Charms.

Merlin, she had been so stupid! All this time, and she hadn't even considered the possibility. She had always assumed her memory loss was in some way a consequence of the attack she had suffered, and had acted accordingly, searching for potions or spells that would release a simply repressed memory.

Now she knew better; now she knew why the potion hadn't worked. Someone had done that to her, someone had knowingly taken her memories away.

What could she possibly had known, what could she had discovered, for someone to do that to her?

Now that she thought about it, she realized whoever had done it, they had been careful, wanting to make it look like an accident. A simple "Obliviate" would have done the job, but it would have definitely had consequences.

Hearing faint footsteps outside, she quickly took the small book, reduced it, and threw it inside her bag, hoping he wouldn't notice it was missing. She sat down again, trying to look innocent as he opened the door and stepped back inside.

"Ready?" he asked, and she nodded. "Come here," he said then, and wound his arm around hers. "Hold on tight," he said, and Apparated them both to a dark, deserted street. "They said you would know where to find them," he whispered, and she nodded. "They saw me, and I had to tell them I was your contact, so you will have lots of explaining to do. Do you want me to go with you?"

"No, I think it would be better if I went alone," she answered.

"You still have the coin, right? He asked, and she reached inside her pocket and pulled it out, showing it to him.

"Good, keep it with you. I'll see if I can find out how they found you, and let you know."

"Thank you," she said truthfully, and Apparated away.

They had agreed on a safe place to meet should something happen, the day they had left headquarters to search for the remaining Horcruxes, and now she knew it had been a good idea.

She Apparated at a dark alley and looked around to make sure she was alone before heading to the small Muggle hotel just around the corner. She opened the door and stepped inside, careful not to make any sound when she noticed the man in man behind the reception desk dozing off. She made her way up the stairs, to the second floor, and down the hallway, until she stood right between doors 23 and 25.

They had rented the room the day after visiting Godric's Hollow, and even though she could not yet cast a Fidelius Charm, she protected the room in every other magical way she knew, which was saying something.

She reached inside her bag and pulled out an old looking key. There were only three of them, and wouldn't work for anyone other than the person they were made for. She waved her wand at the wall and suddenly a wooden door appeared.

It took her a few minutes to carefully lift the wards she had placed, and then used the key to open the door. If anyone tried to open it without the key, or even lifted the wards in the wrong order, they would know right away, and would have enough time left to safely get out of the hotel before anyone could reach them.

She heard the lock click, and then slowly pushed the door open, holding out her hands when she saw Harry and Ron aiming their wands at her.

"Oh, Hermione, it's you," Harry said, lowering his wand, but as he tried to get up Ron stopped him.

"How do we know it's really you?" he asked, eyeing her suspiciously.

"Well, I got inside without setting the alarm off," she said, "Oh, please," she said, when he lifted his eyebrow but remained silent. "You don't want to do this."

"You always say we should be careful," he said, ignoring Harry's protests.

"Very well, let me think," she said, and then smiled evilly at him. "You have a dirty magazine under your bed at the Burrow," she told him, and watched his eyes widen. "I never would have thought you liked leather that much," she teased, watching him go red, and then Harry covering his mouth when Ron glared at him for laughing.

"How do you know that?" Harry asked, between laughs.

"Ginny found it a few years ago, one afternoon when she was helping him look for his rat," she answered with a shrug, not paying any mind to Ron's mumble of "It wasn't mine."

"What's with you and Malfoy?" he suddenly asked seriously, wanting to change the subject and causing the atmosphere to cool in a second.

She stopped laughing, and looked at them. They weren't laughing, or even smiling. They actually looked worried, curious and angry at the same time, and she was suddenly glad she had decided to face them alone.

"What did he do to you?" Harry added.

"Nothing, he just gave me a few potions to wake me up, and then I came here."

"How did he find us? I thought the wards around the tent should have protected us."

"I don't know, but it was a good thing he did. What happened after we left?"

"Well, just what your little friend said would happen, the Death Eaters attacked us. What were you doing with him? He said he was your contact," Ron said, still upset.

"That's right," she simply answered.

"But Malfoy? He's even worse than Snape! Why didn't you tell us?"

"I didn't want to say anything until I was sure. I couldn't remember who had been the one working with me, and thought it might just be a trap or something, so I decided to wait until I knew for sure before telling anyone."

"What do you mean know for sure? Couldn't you just ask Snape or something?"

"He refused to tell me anything every time I asked," she answered. "Besides, Malfoy told me he thinks he might be really working for Voldemort."

"What? But we saw his memories," Harry said, clearly shocked and confused.

"I know, Harry, I'm just telling you what Malfoy said. He has helped a lot, especially tonight, so maybe you two should give him a break. Perhaps I can arrange a meeting, with all four of us, so we can discuss it."

"I'm not sure I want to go anywhere near Malfoy," Ron muttered, and she was just about to respond when she suddenly felt the room spin around her, and it was only Harry's fast reflexes and strong arms that prevented her from falling.

"Are you all right?" he asked in a concerned tone.

"I'm fine, just a little dizzy," she answered.

"What happened when you took the potion?" he asked, as he helped her sit. She looked at him confused, and he sighed and continued. "We know you took it, we saw the empty bottle. I knew you would end up trying it, and was actually starting to wonder what was taking you so long," he said, with a small smile.

"I didn't see anything," she answered, shaking her head. "Just went back to the last few minutes I could remember, and then all went black, and my head felt about to burst open."

"Well, that's weird," he muttered, and she nodded.

"I think we should all get some rest," Ron interrupted. "We can talk about this in the morning, as we decide what to do next."

She didn't really feel like going to bed yet, but wanted some time to herself, so she agreed and let Harry help her to the room they had made for her, when they had enlarged the place.

As soon as she was alone, she reached for her bag and pulled out the book she had taken from Draco, a rush of excitement flowing through her veins at the thought of finding something that would help her remember.

She read every single page in the book, but there was no memory charm in there that fit, most of them had terrible side effects, and only worked on erasing and modifying memories for short periods of time. Still, she was sure her memory loss hadn't been an accident, and she was more determined than ever to find out the truth. If someone had gone to such lengths to make her forget, she was sure it was something important. She needed to know.

It took her hours, but she finally made a decision.

There was one spell in the book, designed to release suppressed memories, which worked on memory loss that was a result of magic. It was dark magic, and rather complicated, but she knew she had to do something, and there weren't many other choices.

And so she took a deep breath, reached for her wand, and took every single step the book described, careful as to not make any mistakes. She read the words to the spell out loud, but started feeling her power drain off as she did. There was only one more line to go, just three more words and it would be over. She moved her wand in a small circle, her mouth dry as she said the last word, and then a blast shot from her wand, a blinding light, and nothing else.

Harry and Ron ran into her bedroom, alerted by the sound, to find her lying on the floor, her wand firmly in one hand, the book in the other. With shaking hands they made sure she was still breathing, although just barely, and without wasting a second, Harry pointed his wand at one of the books that had fallen to the floor, turned it into a Portkey, and then took her in his arms.

"We have to get her to a healer," he said, turning to Ron, who just nodded and moved closer. Leaning down, they both touched the Portkey at the same time, and were instantly transported away.

They appeared right in front of headquarters, and Ron opened the door for Harry.

"Is anyone here?" he yelled, as Harry laid Hermione on the couch. "Hello?" he yelled again, and after a few more minutes they heard the first steps down the stairs.

"Ron?" Molly asked, as she walked into the room. "What's happened? Oh, dear Merlin," she muttered, when she saw Hermione.

"What's going on?" Ginny asked sleepily, as she walked down, followed by her brothers and Remus.

"What's happened to her?" Molly asked them, worriedly.

"We don't know, but she won't wake up," Harry answered, and turned to Remus, who instantly moved closer.

"Where's Madam Pomfrey?" Ron asked, as he was pushed aside by Remus.

"She's not here, she went back to Hogwarts," his mother answered, moving back a bit to let Remus take over.

"Maybe we should take her to St. Mungo's," Harry suggested.

"Can't, they'd ask too many questions, and inform the Ministry," he said, as he tried a few spells to wake her. "Get Snape here," he said urgently, turning to Molly, who moved to the fireplace, threw some Floo Powder into the flames, and then popped her head inside.

Barely a second later, they heard the door open, and Snape strode in.

"What's going on?" he asked, as he walked over to where they were standing. "What's happened to her," he asked then, turning to Harry and Ron.

"We don't know, we just heard a blast, and found her on the floor like this."

"The usual spells won't work," Remus told him, as Severus pulled out his wand.

Without saying another word, he easily lifted her off the couch and pulled her closer to his chest, carrying her to the room in the back where they kept all the potions, barking, "Out of the way," as he moved.


	38. stupid

"Yes, Master?" he asked, bowing, as he Apparated at Headquarters, where he had been summoned only moments before.

"We have good news, Severus," his Master said, clearly pleased. "We have found them."

"You have, Master?" he asked, knowing full well just who he was referring to; Potter, Weasley and Hermione. "But how?" he asked.

"That is not important," he said dismissively, and looked around the room, at the rest of the Death Eaters present. He pointed at four of them, and motioned for them to get closer, before saying, "the rest of you, out," and then turning to Severus again. "You will leave now," he said. "I want Potter alive; I will take care of him personally. And the girl too, I know a few of my Death Eaters who would love to get their hands on her. The other boy you can kill, and then make sure his family finds him. It will make a nice reminder of what they are up against."

"Where are they, Master?"

"Bellatrix will tell you," he said, and Severus turned to her, to find the usual hateful look in her face, the one she had every time she looked at him. She was probably furious at him because he had been put in charge. Not that he cared, of course.

The five of them were left alone, and he turned to the witch to ask where they were going.

"They are around this area," she said, using a map to show them where they should go. "We will be able to track them once we are there," she said then, in response to Severus' raised eyebrow.

"So you don't know exactly where they are," he said, and then asked what he really wanted to know, "How do you know where to find them?"

"Wouldn't you love to know," she said, with a mocking grin.

He had been trying to track them down ever since he found out they had left, but they seemed to be using rather strong concealing and protective charms, that kept deflecting his own. Now that he knew they had been found, he couldn't help but wonder how they had done it, and more importantly, who had. There must be a spy working for the Order, or close to one of its members.

"All right, we will Apparate there, and then split, so we can look better," he instructed, in the hopes that he would find them first and help them get out before the others saw them. "If you find them, call for the rest before attacking, I want the three of them alive."

"The Dark Lord said we could kill one of them," one of the Death Eaters said.

"I know what he said," he retorted angrily, "but I was put in charge of this, so you will do as I tell you. Keep them alive, I will take care of the boy myself."

It only took a few more minutes to decide where exactly each of them would Apparate, and then they left.

As he reached his position, he looked around at the other figures hiding in the dark, throwing silent spells to find magic. It was an old spell, and a very useful one; if they were using magic to hide, then it would bring the Death Eaters right to them.

He had been searching for less than ten minutes when a flash of red light caught his attention, and he turned to the side to see one of the Death Eaters shooting spells and curses at a spot on the edge of the field. He could see the spells deflected, and knew they had found them. Cursing loudly and not wanting to waste a moment, he Apparated next to the Death Eater, and was soon joined by the rest of the team.

"I told you not to attack them, to let me know when they were found," he yelled angrily, but still turned and shot his own spells at the object that was soon appearing before their eyes. It looked like some kind of Muggle tent, he realized, as the Disillusionment Charm started to break.

"Why would I let you have all the fun?" Bellatrix answered in a mock voice, and he was tempted, not for the first time, to turn around and hex her instead.

With another powerful blow, the entrance to the tent exploded, and they stepped inside. It looked like a small apartment on the inside, and it gave the ones in there many places to hide.

A curse shot from behind the table hit him, the blow breaking his arm, and he dropped his wand. As he kneeled to pick it back up, he barely missed another curse by inches. Using his other arm, he cast a protective charm around him, and then another one around whoever was behind that table, deflecting a Cruciatus curse, and giving them time to shoot back.

Taking advantage of the confusion, he stunned two of the Death Eaters that were with him, before moving around the room, trying to find Hermione a way out. It took a few moments to realize there were only two people firing back at them. He knew the one that had been hiding behind the table was the Weasley boy, since he had seen his hair when he had circled the table, and Potter's glasses reflected some of the light from the curses, but where was Hermione? All the Death Eaters that had gone with him were still there, so he knew none of them had taken her away.

"Ron!" he heard Potter shout, and he turned around just in time to see the redhead running across the room. He cast another shield around the boy, not entirely surprised he had just started running without casting one himself, and then watched him reach his friend, something glow in their hands, and then they both vanished.

A powerful curse hit the place where they had been only seconds before, and he looked around to see Bellatrix cursing loudly and waving her wand around, making everything within reach explode. They were the only ones still standing.

"Will you just behave yourself," he yelled at her, pretending to be angry at them escaping, but actually rather worried about Hermione.

"I can't believe you let them get away!" she yelled back.

"I did not let them get away. You were given orders, and you disobeyed. The Dark Lord will hear about this," he threatened, as he walked to the other Death Eaters and woke them up one by one.

"What happened?" one of them asked. "Did we get them?"

"How did they get away?" another asked, when Severus shook his head. "Didn't you place anti-Apparition wards?"

"Yes I did!" Bellatrix yelled, defensively.

"They used a Portkey," Severus answered, and stepped outside of what remained of the tent. "Let's go back to headquarters. You two," he said, pointing at the two men that were still trying to get up, "see if they left something useful behind," And with that, he Apparated away.

"What happened, Severus?" Voldemort asked, as soon as they were alone, and he could see a flash of red cross his eyes.

"They had strong wards, my Lord. By the time we broke through them, they were ready." He had just finished saying that, when he was hit by a silent curse, falling to the floor as his body shook uncontrollably.

"There's always an excuse, isn't there?" he said, once Severus stopped writhing.

"I'm sorry, Master," he said, trying to get up. "The plan was for all of us to attack at the same time, so we would bring the wards down faster, but Bellatrix refused to wait. That is what gave them enough time."

"They are children, Severus; Blood traitors, Half-bloods and even Mudbloods. Grown wizards should easily overpower them. Even wizards as incompetent as my Death Eaters seem to be more often that not."

"Yes, Master," he said, and before he could add anything else, he was hit by another Cruciatus.

"My patience is running out, Severus; we've been through this before," he heard His Master's voice in his head, even louder than his own screams. "I asked you to kill the girl, and you failed. You said you had erased her memories, which would leave her brain severely damaged, but it hasn't. Potter and his friends left the safety of the Order, and I had to find out through someone else, even though I have a spy among them, one that should know everything that happens there. And now, I manage to find them, send five Death Eaters to retrieve three children, and you fail yet again?"

He gasped for breath when the curse was lifted, and took a few seconds before speaking. "They still don't trust me entirely in the Order, Master, that is why they kept that information from me. And tonight," he said, taking a deep breath as he tried to get up, "I was in charge of the mission, and take responsibility for what happened, but I ask you, my Lord, not to send Bellatrix with me again. She refuses to follow my orders, and endangers the missions, as she did tonight."

"I will not allow any more mistakes, Severus," he said, walking to the door and opening it. "Now leave," he said, before waving his hand in the air, making Severus fly out of the room and hit the wall outside hard. He heard Bellatrix snicker beside him, and glared at her as he slowly got up. With a smirk, she walked inside Voldemort studio, and closed the door.

He was slowly making his way down the hallway when he heard her screams, and his Master's cold laughter. He knew she wouldn't get away that easily. With an evil grin on his face, he opened the door, stepped out, and Apparated to Spinner's End.

After the night his Master had been told Hermione and her friends had left the Order, Severus had made sure to keep many healing potions at hand. He still didn't know how Voldemort had found out they had left, but he hadn't been tortured for so long since the night he had been ordered to kill Hermione.

It took almost an hour for all the potions to work, and he finally sighed and sat back on the sofa, the pain gone, and his mind going back to what he had seen that night. Where was she? Why hadn't she been in the tent with her friends?

Molly's head in the fireplace startled him. She didn't even give him time to react; she simply asked him to Apparate to headquarters urgently and popped out without further explanation.

Well, whatever it was they needed, it certainly couldn't be worse than everything that had happened so far that night.

As soon as she was gone, he got up, put his robes back on, and Apparated to the Order's headquarters.

He opened the door and stepped inside, surprised to find everyone in the library, gathered around the couch.

"What's going on?" he asked, and then saw her, lying there, her face pale, and he couldn't even tell if she was breathing. "What happened to her?" he asked her friends, as he moved closer and pulled out his wand.

They had heard a blast? That was all the information they could give him? He was about to retort when Lupin spoke. He told Severus the usual spells hadn't worked. Of course they hadn't, why would they call him otherwise?

He needed potions, and a bigger room where he could at the very least move. Without even thinking, he kneeled in front of her, and lifted her up. It felt so good to have her in his arms again.

He made his way to the small infirmary and carefully laid her down on the hospital bed. He checked her pulse; it wasn't strong. He turned around when he heard the door open behind him.

"What are you doing here?" He all but barked, as he tried a few spells to wake her up.

"We just wanted to know if we could help," one of them answered shyly. He didn't care who it had been.

"Out, get out!" he ordered, still managing to appear calm and in control. He heard them mumble, and then finally the door opening again.

"Potter, Weasley, you two stay," he said, and waited for the others to leave the room before casting a Silencing Charm and turning to them. "What happened to her?" he asked, his wand still moving around her.

"We already told you, we heard a blast, and found her like this."

"I can't help her if I don't know what's happened," he said, seeing the fear for their friend on their faces.

They stayed in silence for a few moments, so he decided to push them a little more. "Her breathing and her pulse are too weak, she doesn't have much time. I need to know what happened."

They looked at each other for a moment, and then Harry reached inside his robes, and retrieved a small book.

"She was holding this when we found her," he said, looking down as he handed the book to him.

"Out," was all he said, before turning back to her.

He waited until they were gone to look at the book, and cursed loudly when he read the title. "Stupid girl," he muttered, as he opened it. A muttered spell showed him the last page that had been read, and he cursed even louder.

"What were you thinking?" he said, as he opened the door to the cabinet where they kept the potions. "How could you be so stupid?" He searched through the bottles, trying to find the ones he'd need, not even noticing many of them falling and crashing on the floor as he hastily pushed them aside.

He finally found the ones he was looking for, and walked to her again. With a hand behind her neck, he carefully pulled her up, sat behind her, and then rested her head on his shoulder, so that she was almost sitting too. He carefully poured the potion down her throat and felt her shake as she coughed, but with a muttered spell, she calmed again and swallowed the first one.

He gave the potion a few minutes to work before he moved on to the next one.

He knew the spell she had used, and thankfully, it took a few hours to work, but he still needed to stop it soon.

It was already dawn when he gave her the last potion and laid her back down on the hospital bed. He had been sitting there behind her for hours, and his muscles were sore. He got up and walked out of the room; she should be up in an hour or too, and he needed something to eat.

He was surprised to find the hallway full of sleeping people. It seemed as if they had fallen asleep waiting for news on Hermione's condition. He was tempted to wake some of them up with an old, nasty curse, but after a few minute's consideration, he decided against it.

He silently made his way to the kitchen, took a piece of cheesecake they had left on the table, and walked back to the infirmary. None of them had woken up yet; some Order members they were, not even noticing someone walk by them twice. He reconsidered cursing them awake; maybe that would teach them to sleep with one eye open.

He was bout to reach for his wand when Lupin opened his eyes.

"Severus," he muttered, getting up, and waking up the others. Pity. "Is she all right?" he asked, completely awake now, and they all looked at him expectantly.

"She will be," he simply answered, opening the door and stepping back inside the room. When they made to follow, he stopped them. "She will not wake up for a few more hours, and I still have to give her some potions; I will let you know when you can see her," he said, and closed the door before they could say anything else.

He had been sitting at the small table for the last hour, reading the book Harry had given him, when he heard her move. He turned to her and slowly stood up when he saw her eyes open.

"Professor Snape?" she asked in a hoarse voice, as she tried to get up.

"Don't," he said firmly, and stepped closer to her. She had referred to him as Professor; that must mean she still couldn't remember. "Take this," he said, as he reached her. She looked at the flask he was offering for a moment, and then did as told. "Better?" he asked, and she nodded. "Good, perhaps now you can explain this," he said, showing her the book.

She looked confused for a moment, her eyes glued to the book, as if trying to remember what it was about.

"The…the memory charm?" she asked.

"Where did you get this?"

"I don't remember," she answered, but he could tell she was lying.

"This is a rare book, not one you can find lying around, or in libraries. Where did you get it?"

"What does it matter?" she asked, and tried to get up.

"Don't," he said, ready to catch her if she fell, but she didn't. "You tried to use this spell on yourself?" he asked, opening the book and giving it to her. She bit her lip, but didn't answer. "I am sure you can read, Miss Granger. You must have read the entire chapter, the instructions, the effects, the warnings," he said, and she nodded again. "This spell, as you can see, was designed to use on other people, not on the caster. Why would you ever do something as stupid as casting it on yourself?" he asked then, his anger quickly rising. When she didn't answer, he stepped closer, and whispered, "Answer my question," in a threatening voice.

"I needed to remember," she said, looking at him defiantly.

"This is dark magic, it takes power and practice, what made you think you would be able to do it?" he said, knowing it would upset her.

"I have power, and skill, I don't need to practice a spell a hundred times before I can do it right."

"Is that so?" he asked with a sneer. "Then why did I have to come here and save your life, again? Shouldn't you have learned your lesson by now?"

"Save my life? I'm not even sure you saved me the first time. You think I don't know my memories were taken from me?" she asked. "Now that I think about it, how do I know it wasn't you?" she said, taking another step closer to him. "What could I have possibly discovered that was so important? What did I know that made it necessary to make me forget over two months of my life?"

"What are you talking about?"

"Was it something about you? Maybe I discovered your true alliances, and you thought this was the best way to shut me up."

"This spell must have made you paranoid," he said, dismissively, and turned from her.

"That's your defence?" she asked, and the next second he was facing her again.

"My defence? Why would I need to defend myself, and especially in front of you? I am loyal to the Order, and your stupidity almost got me killed. I warned you not to leave, and you didn't listen. What do you think happened when the Dark Lord found out from someone else that you were gone?" he said, so close to her now he could feel the heat radiating from her body. "Who do you think was tortured for hours, for not providing the information he had been ordered to get?" He saw her flinch at his words, but that didn't stop him. "I risk my life every day to keep you and your friends safe, and still you think I have to defend myself?" he asked, his voice lower with every question. "Where were you today?"

"What do you mean?"

"When your friends were attacked tonight, you weren't there. Where were you?"

"That's none of your business," she retorted indignantly.

"You are wrong. It is my business, because I was there, because I was in charge of the attack and still had to make sure your friends made it out alive, and because I was the one that had to explain the Dark Lord why there weren't three dead bodies in front of him. Where were you?" he asked again.

"If you don't know yet, then there must be a good reason, don't you think?"

"What is that supposed to mean?"

"When I asked for your help weeks ago, you dismissed me. All I wanted was a few answers about what had happened to me, and all you said was that I was better off that way. Now I found someone willing to answer all those questions, and you come here expecting me to tell you what you want to know? Well, I'll just say one thing, you're better off this way," she said, and turned around, heading for the door.

It took him a moment to go through what she had just said, and then he was following her.

"Do you think this is a game?" he asked his hand on her shoulder as he forced her to turn around just as she was reaching for the doorknob.

"Let go of me," she said, and he saw her reach for her wand. Before she could do it, he took both her wrists and pinned her arms on either side of her head.

As he pushed her back, she hit her head against the door, and her eyes suddenly went blank. He saw her turn her head to both sides, as if looking at something that wasn't there. Too shocked to do anything, he watched as she tilted her head, her eyes fixed somewhere over his shoulder. "What are you doing?" she asked, and he could hear the fear in her voice, but before he could answer, she shook her head, and then her eyes focused on him again. She frowned as she watched him, as if she wasn't sure about what had just happened.

"Let go of me," she repeated after a few seconds, trying to push him away, but he was stronger.

"What happened?" he asked, and she frowned again. "Just now, you were gone for a few moments; what happened?"

"I don't know," she answered slowly.

"It could be a side effect of the memory charm, it could be dangerous. I have to know what happened."

"I just… I don't know," she repeated, but he knew she was lying. Were her memories coming back? Had she just seen something she had forgotten? If so, what should he do about it?

He watched her as her eyes moved to where he was holding her hands, and she tried to push him away again. Caught off guard, he stumbled back a little, but before she could get away, he had pushed her against the door again, this time his body flush against hers, keeping her still. He hadn't done it on purpose, it had been just instinct, but now he realized he was closer to her than he had been in a long time, their lips barely an inch away.

"You said someone was giving you answers," he said, his voice husky even though he tried to sound normal. "Who is it?" he asked, and she shook her head.

"Someone told the Dark Lord you had left headquarters; I'd been trying to find you for days unsuccessfully, and today he did it. Whoever you have been talking to, they could be spying for him. I need to know who it is."

She was so close, it was driving him crazy. He had missed her; her body, her touch, even her stubbornness, and now she was there again, biting her lower lip nervously, making him wish he were the one nibbling on it. His gaze travelled back to her eyes, and he saw desire there; the same desire he had seen before, not so long ago. But there was also confusion; she couldn't understand what was happening. His face inched closer, and he closed her eyes when his lips ghosted over hers, but he couldn't do it. He had taken away her memories to make her forget, to give her a real chance to have a good life, and he wouldn't ruin it now, not after so much effort.

With a groan, he stepped away from her, and he refused to meet her gaze.

"Your friends are waiting for you out there," he said. "They were worried; they will want to know you are awake."

"Why d…" she started to ask in a soft voice, but then trailed off.

"You will have to be more careful who you talk to; you are putting many people in danger. And if you or your friends even think about leaving again," he said, his voice a little stronger, "I will find you and take you to the Dark Lord myself."

She didn't answer; she simply nodded, and then turned around and left the room. He took the small book, and then walked away too, not even listening to the voices thanking him for helping her.

He needed to find out where that book had come from. There weren't many places where one could find such rare books, especially those full of Dark Magic, of spells that had been outlawed long ago. But he had to, because he knew that, by doing so, he would find the spy.


	39. misunderstandings

"Hermione, are you all right?" the voices asked as she stepped out of the room, leaving Snape behind. What was she supposed to say? She didn't even know the answer herself.

"I'm fine," she finally assured them, mostly because she wanted them to shut up. She couldn't think with all the voices, all the questions, and they were so close she couldn't breathe.

"Careful there," one voice covered the other ones, and strong arms circled her waist as she stumbled backwards. "Maybe you should lie down a bit longer," he said, and she recognized Kingsley's voice.

"No, I'm fine," she answered, stepping out of his embrace just as the door behind her opened again and Snape walked out. They all started talking at once again, asking him what had happened, and thanking him for helping her, and she covered her ears with her hands, trying to block the sounds out.

"Hey," Harry said, turning to her again and taking her hands in his. "What's wrong?" he asked concerned.

"Nothing, my head just hurts a bit," she said, hating the fact that they were all focused on her again.

"Can you walk?" he asked, and she nodded. "Okay, let's get you up to bed then," he said, wrapping an arm around her waist to help her walk up the stairs. She heard a few more voices, some agreeing, others wanting to know what had happened, but she paid them no mind as she made her way into her room, with Harry's help.

Suddenly, she was incredibly tired, as if she hadn't slept in weeks, and she barely registered Harry leaving, her eyelids too heavy to keep her eyes open.

It was a strange dream she had. It started off with her in Diagon Alley, walking back to headquarters and noticing the two hooded figures, just what she had seen when she had taken the potion, only this time, the pain didn't come.

She turned around and followed the two men, because, for some reason, she knew they were two men, out of the Alley and into Muggle London. A few more steps and everything around her changed. She was lying on the floor now, surrounded by masked Death Eaters, her body writhing as their curses hit her. She didn't feel pain, but could see blood soon covering her skin.

The images were blurry, and she couldn't make out much, but it was a dream, and she _knew _what was happening, for the most part. She was chained to a wall next, and there was a man standing in front of her. He leaned closer and kissed her neck.

"What are you doing?" she had asked. It was the same thing she had seen in the infirmary, when Snape had pushed her against the door and she had hit her head. Still, she couldn't see who the man was; she knew he was someone familiar, but couldn't remember who.

He kissed her then, and before long she was returning the kiss, knowing deep down, he was trying to help her. Everything started going faster then, his hands on her body, his hot breath by her neck, his erection slowly pushing inside of her, and then they were standing in a dark street, his lips on hers as he kissed her once more before Apparating away.

She woke up with a start; what had that been about? It seemed like the spell she had used was working, but not as it was supposed to. Who had been that man? From what she had gathered the last few weeks, it would be Draco, but it didn't seem right.

She was still tired, but knew she wouldn't be able to fall back to sleep, so she decided to get up and go to the kitchen to get some breakfast. She had to be careful with what she said around everyone, though; she couldn't let the one that had taken her memories away know she was starting to remember, or they would do it again, or worse.

It was a bit late, and everyone had already finished breakfast, so she thankfully got to be alone for a little longer. She had just finished her coffee, though, when Molly entered the kitchen, walking over to where she was sitting as soon as she saw her, asking her how she was feeling, scolding her for leaving, and wanting to know what had happened, all at the same time. It took her over ten minutes to get away, having to tell Molly she wasn't feeling well and wanted to go back to bed so that she would finally let her go.

She was walking down the hallway towards the stairs when she stopped dead on her tracks, by the library. Someone had just spoken her name.

"I know, Ron, but I'm worried about her," she heard Harry mutter. "She's been acting weird lately."

"And not just that; you saw the book she was holding last night when we found her, right?"

"Yeah, I did. I guess she tried something from it to get her memories back."

"But it was Dark Magic, mate; what was she doing with that?"

"No idea. Plus, she's all secretive again; she's not the Hermione we used to know."

"Maybe she's been spending too much time with the ferret."

"That's the other thing; after Snape, I thought nothing else would surprise me, but now this… I can't believe she's been meeting with him, and never told us; we would have helped her. She needs to trust us."

"Maybe we should talk to her, and listen to what she has to say."

"It would probably be the best way; Merlin knows being sneaky doesn't work."

"Oh, my, remember the day we followed her?" Ron asked, laughing.

"I swear, mate, the look on her face, I thought she was going to torture us to death."

"I still don't know how we got away without a scratch; I thought…"

But she didn't get to hear the rest, as in that precise moment the door opened and the first Order members arrived for the meeting. Not wanting to be caught listening, she hurriedly moved up he stairs and back into her bedroom.

They were right, and she knew it. And so was Snape. What she had done had been plain stupid, using a spell she knew nothing of, without even practicing a few times before, and knowing it was meant to be used on another person, and not on the caster itself. But she had been desperate, wanting to remember everything that had happened to her, partly because she thought it might help her friends, and partly because, deep inside, she felt it was really important.

And she shouldn't have kept information from them either, but she hadn't been sure she could trust Malfoy at first, and then, when she finally believed him, she hadn't told them either, knowing it would just be too hard to explain, that they might not understand. They would probably have refused to accept his help, even when they needed the information he could provide. But now Harry and Ron knew the truth, and they didn't reject her, or suspect her; they were just worried for their friend. She should have known they'd understand.

Lying in bed, lost in thought, she barely noticed the hours go by, and not until Ginny told her lunch was ready did she realize how late it was. She ran down the stairs, wanting to eat as fast as she could so she could get away quickly. She didn't feel like being around people, and wanted to get some sleep, hoping she would remember more.

Not paying attention to where she was going, she entered the kitchen and hit something solid, falling to the floor ungracefully. It took her a few seconds to realize it wasn't a something, but a someone.

"Careful there," Kingsley said in his deep voice, as he offered to help her up. "Are you all right?" he asked, as she stood.

But she wasn't really listening to him anymore; her eyes were locked on their joint hands. It was a strange sense of Déjà Vu, but she wasn't sure what to make of it. She noticed him tense, and looked at him. He was looking back at her, confused, and she finally let go of him, but as she did, her gaze went back to her empty hand.

"I had a paper," she muttered, almost to herself. "I had a note, and I gave it to you." He quickly retrieved his hand when he heard her, but didn't say anything. "I gave it to you," she repeated, and closed her eyes, trying to remember more, but nothing else came.

"Maybe we shouldn't talk about this here," he whispered, and she looked back at him, shaking her head to try and clear her mind. "Meet me at the Leaky Cauldron tonight, at ten," he said, and then turned back around, waving everyone goodbye before leaving.

She spent the rest of the day wondering what Kingsley could possibly know, to not want to talk about it in front of others, and trying to decide what to ask, if he agreed to answer her questions. She wanted to tell Harry and Ron she was meeting him and that she was starting to remember, but she didn't want to worry them, and she was sure they would start asking too many questions if they knew; besides, it wasn't like she had remembered anything important, right?

She was almost half an hour late, but she had had to wait for Ginny to go to bed before sneaking out. She entered the Leaky Cauldron and searched the room with her eyes, easily finding the Auror sitting at one of the far tables, by the stairs.

"You're late," he said as she sat down.

"Yes, sorry."

"Trouble sneaking out?" he asked, with a knowing look.

"Not much, really," she answered, and ordered a Butterbeer when the waiter approached their table. "So," she continued, once they were alone again, "Why did you want to meet me here?"

"What happened today, when you ran into me in the kitchen?" he asked, and when she didn't answer, she continued. "You remember, don't you?"

"Just a few things, they're starting to come back."

"Last night, when they took you to headquarters, you had done something to remember, hadn't you?"

"Just a spell," she admitted. Maybe if she told him part of the truth, he would tell her what he knew.

"Simple spells don't leave you like that."

"I probably messed up when casting it," she said, with a shrug.

"So, what did you remember?"

"Just what I said, I remember giving you a note. What did it say?"

"You wanted me to meet you here," he answered, after a few seconds.

"What for?"

"You wanted my help, wanted some Death Eaters we had captured freed."

"What? Why would I want that?"

"You said your contact would gain his Master's trust if he gave him the information."

"And what did you…?" she started asking, but a figure walking past her distracted her. A woman was walking towards the stairs, and dropped a key on her way. "There was a key, right here," she muttered, touching the table. "He left it for me."

"What are you talking about? Where are you going?" he asked, when she suddenly stood up and started walking up the stairs.

"It was for one of the rooms up here, he was waiting for me," she mumbled. "Here, it was this one," she said after a few moments, stopping in front of one of the doors and touching the silver plate with a number on it. "He was here. I have to…" she said, and with a muttered spell, the door creaked open.

"What are you doing? You can't go in there," Kingsley said, close behind her, but she wasn't paying him any attention.

"It was darker," she said, stepping inside. "There was a candle, right there. And he was sitting on the bed. He wanted to know if you were going to help us." Why could she suddenly remember all that, but not him? It was so frustrating.

"What else do you remember?"

"You wanted to know who I was working with, you said you wouldn't help us unless I told you," she continued, slowly pacing the room, trying hard to remember. Suddenly, she turned back to him, a shocked expression on her face. "You thought I was a Death Eater," she said, her voice much louder. "You wanted to see if I had the mark."

"Well, of course I did. You show up one day, start giving us inside information, what was I supposed to think?" he said, defensively.

"I can't believe you," she said angrily, barely listening to what he was saying. "How could you think I would betray the Order, betray Harry?"

"Just listen to me, will you?" he said, taking her by the shoulders and shaking her slightly. "I just had to be sure, I couldn't risk…"

"You couldn't risk what?" she interrupted, pushing him away. "All the information I had given had been truth, and useful. How could you even think I would help Voldemort?" she asked, and then pushed past him and out of the room.

"Hermione, wait," he said, running after her, wrapping his hand around her arm to stop her.

"Let go of me," she said, her voice low and dangerous, her other hand reaching for her wand.

"Can't we just sit for a moment, discuss this calmly?"

"There is nothing to discuss," she said, firmly. "Now let go of me, or I swear…"

"Put that wand down, Hermione," he said, his calm tone making her even angrier. "I was just concerned, alright? I was worried about you, and wanted to make sure you hadn't gotten yourself in too much trouble," he said, taking her other hand, pulling her a bit closer and pushing her wand to the side.

"No," she said, and shook her head slightly. "You thought I was one of them," she repeated, and yanked her arms free. "You thought I was with them," she repeated, and then turned away from him and ran down the stairs.

"Hermione, wait," she heard him yell after her, but she didn't stop, and as soon as she was far enough, she Apparated back to headquarters.

She couldn't believe he had suspected her in that way. What had she done to make them all think there was something wrong, to make Kingsley suspect she was a traitor, and Ron and Harry to follow her around? What had happened o her, what had changed her that much in just a few week?

As silently as she could, she entered the house and made her way up the stairs, careful as to not wake Ginny up. It had been a long night, and she still wasn't sure what to make of it. Worried as she was, it wasn't long before she fell asleep though, her mind taking her back to the room at the Leaky Cauldron, only this time the memories were of the man pushing her against the door, of his lips on her skin, on her hands taking off his clothes, desperate to touch him. She had wanted him, she could feel it even in the dream, but something wasn't right. Draco was supposed to be her contact, but she didn't feel that way around him, the desire, the need to touch him. Was that just because of the memory loss, or was there something else? Well, there was only one way to find out, she would have to see him again.

"What took you so long?" the voice said, as soon as Draco entered the room.

"I was busy," he simply answered.

"You certainly weren't doing what I told you to do."

"I've asked her, but she doesn't know anything yet. I can't push too much, or she will grow suspicious."

"Can't push too much? You couldn't even tell me where she and her little friends hiding!" the voice said, angrily.

"That's because I didn't know, but I've already…"

"I don't care, Draco. I want to know where they are keeping him, I want him out. If she can't find out, then she is useless to us."

"She will, it will just take some time."

"A week; that is all she will get. If you can't tell me where they are keeping him and the other prisoners by then, it's over; you will go back to the dungeons, and she will be dead. Is that understood?"

"Yes," he answered curtly.

"Get out of here now, I have other things to do."


	40. the house

The dreams had returned that night, but this time they were different. She was in the woods, following someone who wouldn't stop and wait for her when she tripped. She was annoyed by that, but didn't say anything. They suddenly stopped, and she looked up at what looked like a run down old house, just about to fall to pieces.

Everything around her changed after a few moments, and she found herself inside what looked like a manor. Somehow, she knew it was the same house.

She was looking for someone, for a man. She hadn't seen him in days, and was worried. She had searched the entire place, before she heard something break upstairs. She ran to where she thought the sound had come from, and found him, the man she had been looking for, lying on the floor, covered in blood.

She moved closer to him, but the image was still a bit blurry. She took another step and kneeled down by his side, narrowing her eyes; as if that would help her see, help her recognize him.

"Hermione," a voice said, far away. The room went darker, and she grasped the man's shoulder with both hands. She just needed another second, just one more second and she would know, she would remember him.

"Hermione," the voice repeated, more insistently, and she felt the man vanish into thin air. She groaned loudly as the rest of the room went black, and then her eyes fluttered open.

"Hermione, wake up," Ginny insisted. The sun was up, but she had no idea what time it was. "Lunch is ready."

"Lunch?" she asked, sitting up.

"Yes. Mum wanted you to get some more rest, but says you need to eat too, so you'll get your strength back."

"I'm not hungry," she muttered, upset they had chosen that precise moment to wake her up.

"She'll drag you downstairs herself if you stay here, you know it," she warned her, as she walked back out of the room.

She quickly got dressed and went to the kitchen, but was back out in less than half an hour, having barely eaten and claiming she wasn't feeling well. She knew that excuse would stop working soon, but until then, she would make full use of it.

She spent the rest of the day in her bedroom, not even leaving for dinner, just trying to remember what he looked like, and trying to see him again. It was no use, she realized, as night fell. She would have to do something different, more drastic.

Once more, she waited until everyone had gone to bed before sneaking out. She had taken Harry's Invisibility Cloak that afternoon, while he had been in the garden with Ron, and used it to cover herself as she crept down the stairs and out of headquarters.

That image, above all others, had been haunting her all day; the old house in the woods. Many things had happened in there, and she wanted to know, to remember. She had that image so engraved in her mind, and was so focus on what she wanted; it only took her two attempts to Apparate there.

She opened her eyes and sighed in relief when she found herself standing in front of the old house. Her knees felt weak, a mixture of fear and expectation, and she had to force her legs to move, slowly stepping closer to the building that looked so familiar. It was only a few steps away, but it felt like miles to her.

Her fingers shook slightly as she reached for the doorknob, half expecting to set some kind of wards off, but deep inside she knew she would be able to walk inside without a problem, like she had so many times before.

On the inside, the house was exactly like she had seen it that night, only now it seemed even bigger. Deciding she should start like she had in the dream, she slowly made her way up the stairs, wand at the ready as she walked down hallway after hallway until she found the room she had been looking for, the room where she had found him once, on the brink of death.

She stepped inside and knelt by the place where she had seen him. There wasn't any blood on it, in fact, the entire place looked clean and tidy, but she knew that was where she had found him, where she had run to his side, her heart almost beating out of her chest at the thought of losing him. And still, she couldn't remember who he was.

She wasn't sure how long she had been kneeling there, but she guessed it had been a long time, by the way her knees hurt. She groaned as she slowly got up, the cloak falling off her shoulders, but she didn't care; she knew she was safe there.

She searched the room for some kind of clue, something that would let her know who lived there, but there was nothing, not a picture, not even clothes. She walked to the next room she found, and stopped by the door. She had slept there, she was sure. There was nothing in there either.

She was quickly losing all hope, and slowly walked back down the stairs, Harry's cloak now in her hand. The entrance hall, the kitchen, it all seemed familiar, but nothing helped her remember.

The last place she entered was the library, and she shivered as her eyes searched the room. Like Draco's library, this one was packed with books, the shelves going all the way up to the roof; but there were books missing here, it was easy to tell. She walked around the room, her eyes stopping on each cover for a few seconds. There were all kinds of texts there, both old and new, and covered just about every subject she could think of, potions, charms, history, herbology, and many were on Dark Magic. But there seemed to be books missing on every subject, as if the owner had taken the most important ones before leaving the house.

Tired and frustrated, she decided it would be best if she headed back to headquarters; maybe now she had seen the house, her dreams would be more specific, more helpful.

But as she turned around, her eyes fell on the desk, on one side of the room. She took a deep breath, her heart hammering as she hesitantly stepped closer to it. She closed her eyes as her fingers touched the cold wood.

"_But I'm leaving with Ron and __Harry; I won't even be around the Order."_

"_It doesn't matter."_

"_You can't, please; you can't do this to me. There has to be another way."_

She felt tears well up in her eyes as she opened them again, feeling all the anger, the sadness, the confusion she had felt back then. So that was where it had really happened, that was where her memories had been taken away.

A part of her wanted to sit by the door, and just wait for the owner of the house to come back. Surely he would return, and she didn't care how long it took. But she knew that was not an option; she had to go back. She would talk to Draco; find out if it had been him that had made her forget. If not, she would go to Snape again. He had to know something; he had been the one to find her that night, after all, or at least that was what they had told her.

She covered herself with the cloak again, and walked out of the house. There was nothing else she could do in there, it was time to go.

It had been a day since then, and not much had happened. She had still been avoiding everyone, or trying to, really. They wouldn't leave her alone for long. They were always around her, wanting to know if she was all right, asking her what was going on, why she was behaving that way. They were getting on her nerves.

Using headaches as an excuse yet again, she had managed to get away from them for a few hours, but Kingsley standing by her door broke the afternoon's peace. She tried to get him to leave, but he refused to go until she heard what he had to say.

"I'm sorry about what happened, about thinking you could betray us," he said, stepping inside the bedroom and closing the door behind him, "but you have to understand, the kind of information you were providing."

"I know," she interrupted. "And you had every right to think that; I overreacted, it's just that…" she trailed off.

"What?"

"This memory flashes, they are just confusing; they just come and go, and I'm never sure what I see; they are actually more like feelings, mostly."

"It started happening after the spell, right?" he asked, and she nodded. "What spell did you use?"

"I don't remember, really," she lied. The last thing she needed was to get in trouble for using Dark Magic. "It was an old book I had found not long ago, but I think I must have lost it when Harry and Ron brought me here the other night."

"Maybe if you could remember what book it was, we could find a way to stop the flashes."

"Stop them? Why would she want them to stop? What she wanted was for all of her memories to come back, once and for all.

"Sure," she said, with a smile. "I'll try to remember which one it was. I think I have a list written somewhere, maybe I can find the name there."

"Just let me know if you remember anything important."

"I will, but I have a favour to ask," she said, and he nodded, waiting for her to continue. "Don't tell anyone else about this, about the memories coming back. I don't want them to worry for no reason."

"Okay," he answered after a few moments, and she sighed in relief. "Well, I have to head downstairs now, wouldn't want to be late for the meeting," he said, opening the door again. "Friends?" he asked, uncertainly.

"Of course," she answered with a smile.

"Next time I take you out for a drink, I hope you won't threaten to curse me and then run away," he said, as he left the room, leaving a bewildered Hermione behind.

Surprisingly, it hadn't been the only strange visit she received that day. Just a few hours later, after the meeting was over and most members had left, a loud knock on her bedroom door startled her. She had been lying in bed, trying to sleep, and just as she was dozing off, the noise startled her.

She considered the possibility of ignoring whoever was at the door, but after only a few more seconds the knocking became more insistent, and with a groan, she got up and opened the door.

"What?" she asked, exasperated, thinking it was probably Harry or Ron, but gasped in surprise when she found Snape standing in front of her. "Sorry," she muttered, slightly embarrassed. "I thought you were…"

"As much as I would enjoy staying to chat, there are other, more pressing matters, that require my attention," he interrupted curtly, "so let's get straight to the point."

"All right then, what are you doing here?" she asked briskly. She didn't have to put up with his manners.

"I have been told you have spent most of the last two days in here."

"So?"

"So, I was told, repeatedly, that you were suffering from strong headaches, and Molly will not stop harassing me until I make sure you will not drop dead when least expected."

"Well, there's no need to worry, I am perfectly all right."

"Is that so?"

"It is," she said, trying to sound convincing.

"Then why have you spent so much time in here?"

"I just wasn't in the mood for company," she said, dismissively.

"Why don't you let make sure, so we can get this over with," he said then, and walked past her and into the room, without waiting for an answer.

"Where are you going?" she asked, turning around and following him.

"You didn't expect me to do it in the hallway, did you?"

She looked at him for a moment, ignoring the shiver his words had caused, and trying to decide what to do. With a sigh, she finally nodded and asked, "What do you need?"

"Come here," he said, and she moved closer to where he was standing. Without saying a word, she watched him reach for his wand and then mutter a few words as he mover it over her head.

"Everything seems normal," he said, after a few moments. "It could be just a side effect, after the memory charm you cast. Have you been feeling anything else, other than the headaches?"

"No," she answered, a little too fast, and he narrowed his eyes.

"I can't help you if you lie to me," he said, calmly.

"I'm not lying," she answered, more firmly.

"Yes you are, but I don't care. Take these," he said, reaching inside his pocket and retrieving three small vials. "They should help with the headaches."

"Thanks," she said, as she took them, but gasped when her fingers touched his. "What was that?" she muttered, confused. It wasn't the first time she had felt the tingle, but it had only ever happened with him.

"What?" he asked, and held her hand when she tried to let go.

"That," she said, looking down at their hands. "Didn't you feel it?"

"What did you feel?" he asked, more serious than before.

"I don't know, it was like… like electricity," she said, and felt him tense.

"Has that happened before?" he asked, and only then did she realize what she had said.

"What? Oh, no, it was nothing really. Probably just imagined it," she said, trying to free her hand again, but he held on tight.

"Stop lying."

"What do you care?" she snapped, and finally managed to yank her hand free. The way he was looking at her was making her nervous. It felt as if he knew her, really knew her.

"You are right, I don't care," he said, after a few moments. "Drink that; you will feel better. If anything happens, let me know; just tell someone from the Order, they know how to contact me."

"Wait," she said, as he was about to leave the room, and he slowly turned to face her again. "Please, tell me what you know," she pleaded, in a whisper. She was tired of all the confusion, the frustration of not knowing. "What happened during those months?" she asked, stepping closer to him, barely a foot away, and looking up into his eyes.

"Why do you want to know?" he said, his voice almost as low as hers.

"Because I know it was something important," she answered. She wasn't sure why, but she suddenly felt she could be honest with him, that she could trust him, tell him what she really felt. It was a confusing feeling.

"It wasn't," he answered, his eyes locked on hers.

"Please, tell me," she repeated, inching closer to him without even noticing.

"Trust me; there was nothing important, nothing worth the risk you took with the memory charm."

"No, that's not true," she said, shaking her head. "I know there was something, something I didn't want to forget."

"Why can't you just move on and live the life you deserve?" he asked, so low she barely heard him. She was surprised to see the honesty in his eyes, and even more so when she felt his hand on her chin, gently tilting her head closer, and then his lips descending on hers, slowly, hesitantly.

It only lasted a few seconds, and it wasn't a passionate kiss, nor was it exactly chaste either. It was full of emotion, of longing, and she felt her body relax as she closed her eyes, everything else forgotten as she felt his body move closer to her; but the second she parted her lips he stiffened, and then pulled back, a shocked expression on his face, as if he had only just realized what he had done.

And before she knew what was happening he was gone, leaving her behind, trembling fingers slowly tracing her lips as she wondered what had happened, and why it had felt so right.


	41. Mudblood

He had kissed her. Why had he done it? She had spent the rest of the day thinking about it, and she still couldn't find an answer.

She had noticed him acting strangely, especially during the last few weeks. It was as if he had been trying to avoid her, always refusing to talk to her, or even look in her direction, if he could; he had never seemed to like her, she knew, but now it felt like he was going out of his way to avoid any contact.

What surprised her the most, however, was her own response to his behaviour. Her eyes kept roaming the room during the meetings, until they fell on him, and she barely paid any attention to what was being said; too busy watching him, intrigued not only by his recent behaviour, but by the man in general. He was an enigma, and she felt the need to solve it.

She had felt the tension between them that night in the infirmary, when he had pinned her to the door, and had noticed his breathing harden, and her own heart beat faster, but now he had kissed her, and more surprisingly yet, she hadn't been disgusted in the least. It was insane; he was Severus Snape, her former Professor, a snarky bastard, a Death Eater; she shouldn't even be thinking those things.

"I know where the cup is," Harry whispered by her ear, startling her out of her reverie.

"What?" she asked, leaning closer to Harry.

"The cup, Hufflepuff's cup; I know where it is," he repeated in a lower voice.

"How?"

"Not here," he said, looking back to his breakfast. "Upstairs, when we're done," he said, as he went back to eating.

She didn't want to think about Snape any more, and she welcomed the distraction. Curious as to what he could have found out, she finished her breakfast in a hurry and went upstairs to wait for him.

Almost twenty minutes had passed, and she was still waiting, pacing the hallway and starting to get angry. Why was he making her wait? If it was something important, the sooner she knew the better. She had just decided to go back to the kitchen to look for him when she heard him and Ron talking, as they moved up the stairs.

"Well, you surely took your time," she said, with her hands on her hips, but they merely shrugged.

"We were hungry," Ron said, apologetically, as they entered their bedroom.

"So," she said, as she closed the door behind them, "What's all this about the cup?"

"I took the potion last night, and saw it."

And are you sure he turned it into a Horcrux?"

"I saw him do it," he simply answered.

"Did you see where it is?"

"Yes."

"Okay, when are we leaving, then?" she asked, irritably. Why couldn't he just tell her what he knew, instead of making her ask all the questions?

"Well, that's the problem," he said, and she waved her hand, motioning for him to continue. "We can't get into the place where he's keeping it."

"Why not?"

"Because of the wards; I saw him try them on wizards and Muggles; they will kill anyone who tries to walk through, unless they have the Dark Mark."

"He lets his Death Eaters in?" she asked, confused. She would have thought he'd try to keep everyone away from it.

"Well, I think it's some kind of emergency meeting place, somewhere safe to go to, if they need it."

"We have to find a way to get the wards down; we need to get in there."

"We can't. The wards can't be modified at all, without him knowing."

"There has to be a way, and he must find it, Harry. What else did you see? There must be something useful."

"That's all I saw, Hermione. I've already told you everything."

"Where is this place?"

"Why do you want to know? You can't go there."

"Stop telling me what I can't do, will you?" she said, angrily. "Just tell me how to get there; I'll take care of the rest."

"I don't think…"

"Harry," she almost yelled, interrupting his babbling. "Just stop arguing and tell me," she said in her best bossy tone, the one that always got them doing what she asked.

The idea had popped into her head when Harry had told her only those with the Dark Mark could walk through the wards; they needed a Death Eater to help them. There were only two she knew, and Snape just didn't feel like the best choice. Even if Draco was wrong, and the wizard was truly loyal to the Order, he would ask too many questions, and she was sure the rest of the Order would know what was going on in no time.

So, there was really only one option left, she thought, as she wrote down the last instructions from Harry on how to get to the place, and put the parchment in her pocket. She didn't really know how much she could trust Draco, but they needed to find those Horcruxes soon, so Harry would have a chance to defeat Voldemort, and she decided she would take the risk.

Harry and Ron wanted to know what she was about to do, kept asking what she was planning, but she simply ignored them, walking to her own bedroom, her hand moving back inside her pocket, where she kept the coin Draco had given her; she had a meeting to arrange.

"What is it?" I can't stay here long," Draco said, as soon as he walked into the cabin, where she had been waiting for him for almost half an hour. He looked dishevelled, as if he had been running, and had a cut in his arm that was bleeding.

"Are you all right?" she asked, walking closer to him and reaching for her wand, intending to heal the cut.

"Leave it," he said. "If they realize I'm gone, they will kill me. What do you want?"

"I need your help with something," she finally said.

"What is it?"

"There is an object we need, one we can't get by ourselves."

"Why not?"

"There are wards protecting it, and we can't break through them; you need to have a Dark Mark to get inside," she explained, and watched him stiffen.

"I'm not in the Dark Lord's best regards; if he finds out I'm actually helping you…"

"I know, but this is important."

"What is it?" he asked, with a sigh.

"It's just a cup."

"If it's just a cup, then why do you want it so badly?" he asked, and she shook her head.

"I can't tell you that."

"You are asking me to risk my life for you and your friends, and yet you don't trust me enough to tell me what it is you are sending me to get."

"I do trust you," she replied. "If I didn't, I wouldn't be here, asking for this; but it is not my place to tell you."

"If I do this, I want to know."

"And you will; when you get the cup, I'll make sure you're told," she promised.

"How do I get there?"

"I wrote down the instructions here," she said, handing him the small roll of parchment.

He opened it silently, read what she had written, and after a few seconds he looked back up at her. "Where did you get this?" he asked, clearly surprised.

"You know the place?"

"I do," he answered, after a few moments.

"Can you get the cup then?"

"What do you know about this place?" he asked, ignoring her question.

"Only that it is some kind of meeting place, and that there are wards surrounding it, that will kill anyone without the Dark Mark that tries to get through them. Can you do it?" she asked again.

He seemed to consider the idea before answering. "I will, but trust me; you really have no idea what you are asking."

"What do you mean?"

"All I will tell you is this, if I go there, and get back out alive, if I get you what you asked for, you will owe me; really owe me. I hope you will keep that in mind."

"I will," she said, and with a nod he turned around and opened the door to leave. "Draco," she said, just as he was stepping outside, and he stopped and turned to face her. "Thank you," she said, and was surprised to see him smile, not smirk but smile, before leaving.

As soon as she Apparated back to headquarters she knew something was wrong. The house was deserted, and a few things were lying on the floor, as if they had all ran out in haste. She ran up the stairs, and then back down, trying to find anyone who could explain, or even a note, but there was nothing. She was starting to panic when she heard the door bang open, and ran to the entrance.

"What's happened?" she asked, as she reached them.

"Attack," Kingsley muttered, slightly breathless, as he helped get an unconscious man inside.

"Is everyone all right?" she asked, worried, as she watched a few more members Apparate by the open door.

"Need some help here," someone yelled, and she turned around, gasping when she saw Remus carrying an unconscious and bleeding Tonks in his arms. She ran to him, wand in hand, as he laid the witch on the table, a few more members running there as well.

"What happened to her?" someone asked, beams of light flying from a few wands as they spoke.

"She was hit by a curse, and then fell through the window," Remus explained, and when she looked down at the witch she noticed her hair had turned completely black.

"Is she okay?" another voice asked from her side, and she turned around to look at an exhausted, but otherwise unharmed Harry.

"Merlin, are you all right?" she asked, as she hugged him.

"I'm fine," he said, still clearly worried about Tonks.

"What's happened? I got here and found the house empty, I had no idea where you had all gone; I was so worried."

"Snape came here a few minutes after you'd left. He told us someone from the Ministry had leaked information to Voldemort, and he had sent his Death Eaters to one of the places where they kept the prisoners."

"She's waking up," she heard Molly gasp, and turned just in time to see Tonks slowly open her eyes. She looked around the room, only then noticing it was now full with what looked like just about every Order member.

"Was anyone else hurt?" she asked, after a few moments, and when Harry didn't answer, she turned to him. "Harry?" she asked with a hint of panic in her voice.

"I saw at least three members get hit by the killing curse," he answered, after another few seconds. "I don't know who they were, it was all very confusing. We had to hold the Death Eaters back until the Aurors managed to get the prisoners out."

So that was where Draco had been, before meeting her? Why hadn't he said anything? She moved back from where she was standing and walked over to Kingsley. She knew Harry wouldn't give her the answers she wanted.

"What happened?" she asked, as soon as she reached the wizard. He carefully laid another witch down on the couch and called for someone to heal her, before turning to Hermione.

"Follow me," he said, and walked into the deserted kitchen. "Where were you?" he asked, as soon as the door was closed behind them. "When I came here to gather everyone, you were gone, and nobody knew where to find you," he added.

"I had something to do," she said.

"You did?" he asked, but thankfully didn't push further. "There was an attack; the Death Eaters were trying to get some of the prisoners under the Ministry's custody out."

"In broad daylight?" she asked, confused.

"They didn't really seem to care. We were lucky Snape managed to warn us in time."

"So the Death Eaters didn't get them?"

"No, but we lost good men and women trying to stop them."

"Kingsley, where are you?" a voice yelled from outside the kitchen, and he left without another word.

The rest of the day was spent looking after the wounded, and mourning the dead. She hadn't really known the four Order members that had been killed, but that didn't change anything; it could have been any of her friends, and she knew it.

The next day went by a little faster. Snape had managed to discover who in the Ministry had been leaking the information, and they had had a few meetings to discuss what to do. A few members wanted the Aurors to take him, to have him pay for the pain they had caused, but, as Snape explained, that would do no good, other than risk the Dark Lord suspecting he had a spy among his followers.

It wasn't an easy decision, but they finally agreed they would keep him under careful watch, but would do nothing else against him for the time being. The possibility of using him to leak false information was too good to pass.

With so many things in her mind, it wasn't a surprise to find she couldn't sleep. She hadn't heard from Draco since the previous day, and was starting to worry; if he had retrieved the cup for her, she would know by then. What if he had been discovered? Or worse, what if he wasn't there to help her, but to spy on the Order? Maybe he had told Voldemort everything she had said to him, and now the dark wizard knew they were after his Horcruxes. She didn't want to consider that possibility; if that happened, it would make finding and destroying the remaining pieces of his soul nearly impossible.

To be honest, that wasn't the only thing keeping her awake. She had realized a few days ago that the dreams and flashes had stopped. She wasn't sure what had happened, but she hadn't remembered anything new since the night she had met with Kingsley. She was scared the memories were gone for good now, and didn't want to sleep, in case doing so would confirm her suspicions.

It was late afternoon of the next day when she finally felt the coin in her pocket heat up, and she almost sighed in relief. She considered telling Harry and Ron what was happening, but decided it would be best if she made sure Draco had managed to get the Horcrux for them before doing it, so she got ready and then waited for the Portkey to activate and take her to the cabin once again.

"I really hope it was worth it," Draco's voice called from the darkness, as soon as she opened the door.

"You have it?" she asked, excited.

"It's over there, on the table," he answered, and with a flick of her wand, she turned the lights on.

"Merlin, what's happened?" she asked, as she took in his appearance.

"I told you it would be dangerous. Whatever that thing is, it was well guarded," he said, blinking a few times as his eyes adjusted to the light.

"Well guarded?"

"Inferi," he explained, with a shrug.

"Are you all right?" she asked, as she stepped closer. "You are covered in blood."

"Not mine," was all the answer she got, as she watched him try to get up, but then wince at the pain and fall back into the chair.

"They don't bleed," she said with a confused frown, a few seconds later.

"What?"

"The Inferi, they don't bleed."

"No, they don't, but I ran into a couple of Death Eaters on my way out," he explained. She didn't need him to tell her what had happened; by the amount of blood on his robes, it was quite obvious.

"Do you need help healing those cuts?" she asked, not really knowing what to say.

"Sure," he answered, with a shrug, as she walked to where he was sitting. "Already took care of the worst ones myself, but if they find so much as a mark in me, it will raise suspicions."

"Won't he know something is wrong, when they find the Death Eaters?" she asked, as she moved her wand over his face, healing the wounds.

"They will not find them for a few days; that should give me enough time."

"Enough time for what?"

"I will need a good story, in case I am questioned. Where did you learn all these Healing Spells?" he asked, after a moment. "They don't teach them at Hogwarts."

Her hands stopped moving as she thought about his question. "I don't know," she finally answered. "I can't remember learning them, but I know I have used them before."

They stayed in silence for a few more minutes, as she finished healing him, and then she moved back to the table, where he had left Hufflepuff's cup. It was hard to believe such a small object could hold so much evil inside.

She hesitantly reached forward and took the golden cup in her hands. It was just as Harry had described it, the finely wrought handles, the badger, but she had to make sure it was really what they were looking for. She reached for her wand, pointed it at the cup, and whispered, "Homenum revelio."

"I can't believe we've found it," she muttered to herself.

"You are quite excited, for it being just a cup," he said by her ear, repeating what she had told him the last time.

"You have no idea how much this will help," she said, and carefully placed it back on the desk.

"Don't I get a reward then?" he whispered, so close now she could feel his breath on her neck.

"Reward?" she asked, her breath catching when she felt his arms wound around her hips from behind.

"Yes," he breathed by her ear, "Just a little something to show your appreciation."

She unconsciously tilted her head to the side, and bit her lip when she felt his mouth nibbling on her neck. Sensing her response, his hands started roaming her body, one making its way up, lightly caressing her breasts, as the other moved lower, his fingers leaving a hot trail as they moved up her thigh.

Her eyes fluttered shut for a few seconds, and when she opened them again, she realized they were standing right in front of the window. Her vision became blurry for a moment, and a slightly different image appeared in front of her. It was the same cabin, the same window, but there was someone out there, watching. She narrowed her eyes, trying to see better.

Even when she couldn't see clearly, there was no mistaking the long blond hair, and cold, steely grey eyes that sent shivers through her body.

"Malfoy," she muttered, the words out of her mouth before she knew what she was saying.

"What happened to Draco?" the man behind her asked, and the vision in front of her vanished. She shook her head, confused, and then felt strong hands slipping under her skirt.

"Stop," she said, pushing him away and walking to the window.

"What's wrong?" he asked, walking closer to her.

"He was here, he was watching," she muttered, a part of her glad she had remembered something else, even though a feeling of dread washed over her at just the thought of Draco's father.

"What are you talking about?" he asked, sounding worried.

"Nothing," she whispered, after a few seconds. "I have to go," she said, and started walking to the door.

"Are you all right?" he asked, stopping her before she reached the entrance.

"Yes, I'm fine."

"What about the cup?"

"Can you keep it safe for a few hours? I think it would be best if you gave it to Harry yourself."

"Okay," he muttered, after a moment.

"I'll talk to him, and then let you know when we can meet again," she said, turning around again.

"Wait," he said, and pulled her to him.

Without another word, he leaned closer and brushed his lips against hers. She felt his hand on her chin as he deepened the kiss, and she found herself responding. It reminded her of the way Snape had kissed her, but certainly not as intense.

After a few moments, he broke the kiss, resting his forehead against hers as he whispered, "Be careful."

"You too," she answered, before turning around and stepping out of the cabin.

She decided to Apparate in Diagon Alley and then walk back to headquarters. She needed time to think. The streets were dark, and almost deserted, but the fresh air helped her clear her mind. She hadn't felt with Draco what she had when Snape had kissed her. It wasn't bad, but there had been no tingling sensations; it hadn't left her heart hammering in her chest, or her body flushed and gasping for breath.

She should have been paying attention to her surroundings, but she was too distracted, and by the time she heard the footsteps behind her, it was too late.

A muscular arm wound around her waist, and a hand covered her mouth, preventing her from screaming. She fought, tried to kick, but whoever was holding her, they were too strong.

"So we meet again, Mudblood," a man's voice whispered by her ear, and she heard him chuckle before he Apparated them away.


	42. say goodbye

The arm loosened around her as he Apparated them away, and she took the chance, kicking him again, and then biting his hand when he tried to move it. With a growl, he pushed her away so hard, her head hit the wall, and she fell to the floor. Ignoring then pain, she reached inside her pocket for her wand, but before she could use it, he yelled, "Expelliarmus!" and then "Accio wand!"

She tried to keep the wand, but it slipped between her fingers and flew right into his waiting hand. Desperate, she looked around the room, trying to find something she could use against him, and only then did she realize where they were. The cabin in the woods.

"So, you recognize the place, don't you?" the man asked with a sneer, as he pushed back the hood that had been hiding his face.

"Who are you?" she asked, when she finally saw him.

"Patience, Mudblood," he said, with an arrogant sneer that strangely didn't fit his face. "First, we have to contact an old friend, make sure he joins us for the fun part," he said, calmly. Confused, she watched him as he took a small roll of parchment from his pocket and tapped it with his wand, making it glow blue and then vanish.

"What do you want?" she asked then, her hand inching carefully to the side, trying to reach the log that was lying on the floor, by the fireplace.

"Justice," he answered. "I believe you have… hey there!" he yelled, just as her fingers wrapped around the log.

She lifted it, as fast as she could, trying to hit him before he could do anything to stop her, but she was still lying on the floor, and he was too far away for her to reach him. She didn't even see him move his wand, all she knew was that she had barely lifted the log when she felt searing pain in her arm, the sound of the bone breaking so loud, she could hear it over her pained scream.

She cradled her arm against her chest, biting her lip hard to stop from screaming again; she wouldn't give him the pleasure. She heard him laugh coldly, as he stepped closer to her, lifted his leg and kicked her on the head, and then everything went black.

She woke up on the same spot, and saw his wand aimed straight at her chest. She guessed she hadn't been out for long. She tried to sit up, but the pain in her head was too much.

"It took me three days to get to you, you know?" he asked, and she gasped out loud when she looked up into his face; it looked as if it was boiling from the inside. She watched, with her mouth wide open, as blond hair grew out of his previously bald head, black eyes turned to a steely grey colour, and the round face turned angled and aristocratic.

"Malfoy," she muttered in recognition, and he merely smirked. With a flick of his wand, he adjusted the robes to his taller, thinner form, but he looked so different from the wizard he had been the last time she remembered seeing him. His face looked gaunt, paler, his expression tired, he had lost a lot of weight, and his once silky hair now looked greasy and dirty.

"I have been told your memories of the last few months had been erased," he said, lowering the wand. "Is that true?" he asked.

Did he know something about it? Who could have told him? She wondered if he also knew who had taken her memories, if maybe he would say something important, but apparently, she took too long to answer. She barely heard him whisper, "Crucio," but was immediately overtook by the blinding pain. She felt as if she was burning from the inside, as her body shook uncontrollably, and in that second, she knew it had happened before, knew the man standing in front of her had tortured her, even if she couldn't remember when or how it had happened.

She was sure her body couldn't take any more, that it would all be over soon, when he lifted the curse.

"When I ask a question, you answer," he said firmly, but with a sneer. "Now, is what I heard true?" he repeated, and she simply nodded, as she tried to catch her breath. "So, you don't remember what happened the last time we met?" he asked, and she shook her head. "Well," he said, raising his wand and aiming it straight at her again, "we don't want what happened then to repeat itself," he said, and with a flick of his wand, she was lifted from the floor and thrown against the wall again. She didn't fall his time, however; her arms were magically bound to the wall, her feet dangling inches from the floor.

He stepped closer to her, his movements slow, teasing, and as soon as he reached her, he wrapped his fingers around her throat, so tightly he was almost strangling her. "We were interrupted last time," he said, tightening his hold, and smirking as she fought for breath. "The Dark Lord even punished me for hurting you. Who would have thought? Me, one of his most faithful followers, sent on a suicide mission for harming a filthy Mudblood whore. But it will be different this time."

Her vision was starting to blur, and she didn't have the strength to struggle anymore. Sensing it, he finally let go, and watched amused as she gasped for breath. A loud bang was heard in the room, along with a red flash of lightning, and she turned her face to Lucius Malfoy, surprised to find him smiling broadly.

"He's here," he said, and waved his wand in her direction. Suddenly, the magical bindings were gone, and she fell hard on the floor, landing on her broken arm. She tried to move away, but he was right behind her in two steps. He buried his fingers in her hair and yanked her head back hard, forcing her to get up on her feet. He stood behind her, using her body as a shield, and with the tip of his wand pressed painfully into her neck.

She could feel her heart trying to beat out of her chest as they waited in silence for minutes that felt like hours, both staring intently at the door. Who was it he was waiting for? She had the feeling that, whoever he was, the man was coming to help her, and she could only hope he hadn't gone alone.

Suddenly, the door was blown open, and Lucius tightened his hold on her. A figure appeared on the doorway, a man, dressed in black robes and wearing a Death Eater's mask. His wand was pointing in their direction, but he didn't use it; he seemed to hesitate at the sight of them. It barely lasted a second, but was enough for Lucius to disarm him.

Severus had been sent on yet another mission. His Master had been upset by the last one's outcome, and had practically blamed the failure on him alone. He had advised Voldemort against it, had repeatedly told him an attack during the day wasn't a good idea, that the Aurors and the Order would be alerted too fast, but he hadn't listened.

That had been the main reason why Severus had been surprised to find himself on the wrong end of his wand, fighting not to scream from the pain the Cruciatus Curse was causing. No matter how many times one was put through an unforgivable, it never got any easier.

It hadn't taken him long to find out exactly why he had been blamed for the entire failure. Bellatrix Lestrange. When Severus had suggested they should wait until it was dark for the attack, she had convinced Voldemort of the opposite, claiming it was the best way to prove his power to the wizarding world, and later on, when the mission had failed, she had managed to get him to blame Severus for it, instead of herself. He had a good idea of exactly how she had managed to convince the Dark Lord of that nonsense, but he didn't really want to know.

He had been noticing a few strange things lately. It had been Bellatrix that had informed Voldemort that Potter and his friends had left the safety of the Order, and she that had provided the information of their whereabouts. Needless to say, Severus had been punished both times. She was also getting more benefits and 'rewards' than any of the other Death Eaters, including Severus himself. She had managed to keep her sister safe after she had moved to their headquarters, the Dark Lord himself forbidding his followers from harming her in any way, when any other woman staying with them, and not a Death Eater herself, would have been killed, or begging for death, within the week. She had also gotten her nephew out of the dungeons, where he was sure to have died in a matter of days, and had been the cause of more than a few deaths among Voldemort's followers. Severus was sure she had tried to convince the Dark Lord to kill him too, but as long as he was useful, Severus would be relatively safe.

Severus pushed open the door to headquarters and stepped inside, groaning as he dragged the dead body with him. He had been sent to kill a Ministry official and his family, just him and the Death Eater currently lying dead on the floor. He hadn't had enough time to warn the Order beforehand, and had been forced to make a hard decision again; kill the target, or risk his life and his cover. This time, as he usually did, he had chosen the dangerous path, and had killed the Death Eater sent with him, just a stupid, young kid, blindly following his family's ideals, probably not fully realizing what he had gotten into.

"Severus, what has happened?" Voldemort asked, as he saw him carrying the dead body inside the building. He looked up to see about a dozen Death Eaters gathered around his Master, all eyes suddenly on him, and he realized he had interrupted a meeting.

"Stupid kid couldn't watch his own back," he answered, as he bowed in front of his Master. When he remained in silence, Severus continued. "I believe the wizard had somehow been tipped off, knew we would soon go after him, and he had been ready. He," he said, with a disdainful look on his face, as he flipped the body over with his feet, "didn't last two minutes."

"Are you saying the mission failed?" Voldemort asked, in a dangerously low voice.

"No, my Lord, it was a success," he replied. "The wizard and his family are dead, and the Dark Mark was conjured as you ordered, Master," he said. He had contacted Kingsley after killing the Death Eater, and told him to hide the family, and make everyone believe they were dead.

"Good," Voldemort simply replied. "Go now, we have other matters to discuss," he said, turning back to the other Death Eaters. "Leave him in the dungeons, and contact his father," he said, as an afterthought. "Tell him I expect his other son to prove more useful."

"Yes, Master," Severus replied, reaching for his wand again, and levitating the kid's body in front of him.

He slowly walked down the stairs and into the cold dungeons, making his way past the prisoners until he reached the far wall. He let the body fall on top of three Muggles that had been murdered the night before, and wondered if the war would ever be over.

Pushing the thoughts away, he walked back towards the stairs, but he had barely reached the first step when a flash of blue light made him turn back around, just in time to see a small roll of parchment fall to the floor by his feet. He took a moment to eye it carefully, and performed a few spells to make sure it was safe. He wouldn't put it past Bellatrix to try something as foolish as cursing it, so he had to be careful.

He slowly leaned down and took it, with a sense of unease he couldn't quite understand. He simply stared at it for a few moments, before he finally opened it. A simple glance told him everything he needed to know, bringing back memories of the last time he had received a blank roll of parchment. He could be wrong, maybe it was nothing, but he couldn't take the chance.

He put the parchment in his pocket and hurriedly walked back up the stairs, thankful everyone seemed too distracted to notice him. As soon as he was out, he Apparated to the cabin, feeling the wards around it as soon as his feet touched the ground.

The wards were strong, and it took him a few minutes to get through them, but as soon as they were down, he carefully approached the door. If Lucius was really in there, which he didn't doubt after the kind of wards cast around the place, then he would probably know Severus had arrived by now, so he had to act fast.

He stopped merely a foot from the door and, taking a deep breath, he raised his wand and blew the door off its hinges.

He knew what he would probably find in there, but still, he froze at the sight. She looked so vulnerable, barely able to stand, her lip bleeding, bruises on her face, and one of her arms clearly broken. Lucius was standing behind her, and when their eyes met, he smirked at him, before moving his wand in Severus' direction and disarming him.

It had all happened so fast, there was nothing he could do to stop it. As soon as the wand has slipped past his fingers, Lucius had sent him flying against the wall, pushing Hermione to the floor as he stepped closer to Severus.

"I am glad you are here, old friend," he said, with a smirk, before muttering, "Crucio."

Severus felt the pain take his body, but he didn't scream. He should have brought someone else with him, but there hadn't been enough time. All he could think now was that he had to find a way to save Hermione. He had to do something to help her. He could hear Lucius' laugh, as he towered over him, his eyes lit as he watched his body tremble and convulse. He saw a shape then, movement behind Lucius, and the next second the curse had been lifted.

Gasping for breath, he blinked a few times, as the room focused around him, and he saw Hermione pinned against the wall, Lucius' hand wrapped tightly around her throat as he whispered something Severus couldn't quite hear. He noticed deep scratches in the man's forehead, and he guessed Hermione had done it, trying to get him away from Severus.

He saw her fight Lucius and, hoping he was too distracted to notice, he tried to get up. His legs were still too weak, but using the wall behind him for support, he finally managed to stand. He silently took a few steps closer to Lucius, but before he could get close enough, the wizard turned around, anger evident in his face, and pointed his wand at Severus.

He was thrown against the wall again, only this time, he didn't fall to the floor. His arms and legs were pinned to the wall, and he tried to break the magical bindings, but knew he wouldn't be able to do it fast enough without a wand.

"That's better," Lucius said, smirking at Severus before turning back to Hermione. He flicked his wand again, and bound her to the wall as well, opposite Severus. "She is a feisty little thing," he said, stepping back from her, and healing the wounds on his forehead. He remained in silence for a few moments, looking from Severus to Hermione, as if trying to decide what to do next.

"What do you want, Lucius?" Severus finally asked.

"You thought it would be so easy?" he said, slowly stepping closer to Severus. "You thought you would be rid of me, just like that?" When Severus didn't respond, he continued. "It takes more than a few giants to kill me; you should know that by now."

"There was no need to bring her here; she has nothing to do with this," he said calmly, his eyes fixed on Lucius.

"Oh, but she does; she is part of it. She is the reason why I was sent there. You may fool her, even the Dark Lord, but you cannot fool me, Severus."

"What are you talking about? Just let her go, and we can discuss this ourselves."

"Let her go?" he asked, laughing. "Then she would miss all the fun."

"She doesn't even know what this is about, Lucius. Just…" he started, but was interrupted.

"Oh, but of course! So it is true, you took her memories away," he said, calmly, but he could see the evil glint in his eye. Severus turned his head to Hermione, to find her eyes wide open in surprise, and fixed on his own. "I found it hard to believe at first, Severus Snape doing something so foolish, but now I see it is true."

"Lucius, don't d…" he started, but was interrupted again.

"So you really didn't know it had been him, did you?" he asked, turning back to Hermione, easily reading the surprised and confused look on her face. "What did you ever tell her, Severus?" he asked then, still facing the girl. "Maybe you made her believe it had been someone else, or perhaps some kind of accident?" he asked, and then laughed at Hermione's expression. "And you believed it? I had been told you were rather smart, for a Mudblood. Now I see that was a lie."

"Why are you doing this, Lucius? Your problem is with me, just leave her out of it," he said.

"What would be the fun in that?" he asked, and then waved his wand in Severus' direction, calmly whispering, "Crucio."

"Stop it!" he heard Hermione scream, again and again, and finally the curse was lifted.

"Now stop interrupting," he calmly told Severus, and then turned back to her. "You know," he said, slowly walking closer to her, "you," he continued, placing the tip of his wand on her cheek, "have caused all sort of trouble." He slowly traced the side of her face with the wand, making it cut the skin open, leaving a trail of blood as it moved. Severus could see the tears welling in her eyes, but she didn't scream. "I wonder what it is about you," he said, moving the wand to the other side of her face, "that could make it worth it."

"Lucius, stop it," he said, hating to see what he was doing to her. He watched the man turn around to face him, a wide smile on his face.

"You were a Death Eater, remember?" he asked, moving to where Severus was standing. "You were loyal to your Master, believed our blood was superior, that Muggles didn't deserve to live. And now look at you, throwing it all away for a filthy Mudblood. I wonder what it is about her, that makes her so special," he said, a glint in his eyes that made Severus' blood freeze, as he watched him move back to where Hermione was. "Maybe I should see for myself," he said, as he moved his hand up her thigh. "Oh, good. I love it when you fight," he said, pushing his body closer to hers.

"No, stop!" he heard her scream, but he simply laughed.

"Lucius," Severus yelled, and this time he did stop.

"Does it bother you?" he asked, his hand still resting on her thigh. "You never minded sharing before," he said. "What makes this one so special?"

"What do you think will happen this time, when the Dark Lord finds out what you have done?" he asked, trying to sound calm.

"He will know the truth, this time. I will make sure of that. He will know you are not loyal to him, that you are only loyal to yourself; and when he does, my family will finally get the recognition it deserves."

"So this is what it is about? Then why drag her here?" he asked. Lucius smirked, and turned back to her.

"Crucio!" he yelled, and laughed as he watched her shake in pain, hitting her head hard. Severus was surprised Lucius lifted the curse so fast, and more so when he stepped closer to her. Only then did he notice her eyes, moving about the room, as if she was seeing something they couldn't.

"My, my, we are full of surprises," Lucius said, when she shook her head, her eyes focusing on the man in front of her again. "You could have simply Obliviated her, why go through so much trouble to take away the memories with such a complicated spell?" he asked, turning back to Severus. "Could it be that you were afraid to damage that little brain of hers?" he asked, but received no answer. "Well, this will be even better than I expected," he said with a smirk, turning back to her.

With a flick of his wand, he broke the spell binding her to the wall, and she fell hard on the floor. Severus watched her reach inside her pocket with one hand, but didn't pay much attention; he was sure Lucius would have taken her wand away long before then.

She screamed when Lucius grabbed her by the hair and pulled her up on her feet. He pushed her against the wall again, wrapping one hand firmly around her neck, keeping her in place.

"Lucius, what are you doing?" Severus asked, fighting even harder against the magic binding him to the wall.

"I am going to give you a little present," he answered as he touched her forehead with the tip of his wand and muttered a few words.

Severus knew what Lucius was saying, even if he couldn't hear the words. He could feel the magic in the air, and could do nothing to stop him. He watched her close her eyes, her back arching as she screamed in pain, and then her body fell limp for minutes that felt like hours. Nothing could be heard in the room, except for their breathing, and then she started coughing. She opened her eyes, and he noticed they were unfocused again, but this time he knew she was watching him. He didn't even see Lucius reach inside his pocket, not until the silvery shine of the knife caught his attention.

"Now you can say goodbye to her," he said, as he moved his arm back, and then pushed it forward, burying the long knife in her body.

"Severus," she gasped, a mixture of recognition, anger and fear in her eyes, as she stretched her arm his way, as if trying to reach him, asking for help. He couldn't speak, or help, he could only watch as Lucius moved again, stabbing her a second time, and then a third.

He didn't even hear the voice by the door, screaming, "Father, no!" or see the flash of light that hit Lucius, throwing him to the side, away from her. All he could do was watch her, as she looked back at him, gasping his name again, before finally sliding down the wall, collapsing on the floor, surrounded by her own blood.

The scene playing in front of him was so strange he wondered for a moment if it was really happening. Draco had run inside the room, but instead of helping his father, he had stunned him, and then kneeled by Hermione's side, his movements frantic and caring at the same time, but Severus was too worried to really notice those details.

"Hermione. Hermione, can you hear me?" the boy asked, caressing the side of her face.

"Draco?" she whispered, her eyes still closed, and Severus sighed in relief when he heard her voice, as weak as it might be.

"Everything will be all right, love, I'll take care of you," Draco said, waving his wand, making the bleeding slow down. He stood up then, walking to where his father lay unconscious.

"What are you doing, Draco? What is all this?" Severus asked when he saw him kneel by his father, searching his pockets to find his and Hermione's wands.

"If the Aurors find him, they will kill him," he said, almost to himself.

"What are you doing?" Severus asked again, as he watched him reach for the log that was lying on the floor by them.

"He is my father, I cannot leave him here to die," he murmured, and flicked his wand once, turning the log into a Portkey. In a matter of seconds, Lucius was gone, and Draco was kneeling by Hermione again.

"Get away from her," Severus said, but Draco wasn't listening.

"Hermione," the boy whispered, worry evident in his voice, although Severus wasn't sure just what he was worried about. Her eyes fluttered open for a few seconds, and he saw her lips move, but he couldn't hear what she was saying. Draco reached forward and tilted her face up, so she was facing him, whispered something back, and then carefully took her in his arms.

"Draco," Severus said, when he saw him stand up, carrying her with him. "What are you doing?" he asked, as he watched him step closer to the door. "Untie me," he ordered, but Draco didn't seem to listen. "If you hurt her, I swear…" he said, struggling against the bindings.

"Everything will be all right," he heard Draco whisper, as he pulled Hermione closer to him. "Don't worry, I'll take care of you," he said, oblivious to Severus' presence. "You will be all right," was the last thing he heard, as Draco stepped out of the cabin and Apparated away, with her in his arms.


	43. overheard

The pain in her belly was unbearable; she kept her eyes shut tight, afraid of what she might see if she opened them. She felt strong arms around her, holding her close to a warm chest, whispering things she couldn't understand, as he lifted her off the floor.

"Severus?" she whispered, with the little strength she had left.

"No, it's Draco."

"Draco, you came," she breathed, suddenly feeling safe.

She could feel he was walking, taking her away from that place, from the man that had hurt her, as he called her name, promised everything would be all right.

She couldn't help but think none of it was actually happening, that he wasn't really there, helping her. Maybe she had died, maybe it was all over, but the pain made her doubt that. If she was really dead, shouldn't the pain be gone?

She felt his arms tightening around her, and then something else, as if she was spinning, and her body was being squeezed through a tunnel. She felt her lungs burning, the little air she had in them suddenly forced out as she screamed in pain, feeling the wounds going deeper than before.

"Merlin," she heard Draco say, when they stopped spinning, and her whole body shook as he ran with her firmly in his arms. He lay her down on something soft, although she was in so much pain, it didn't make any difference. His hands were cold against her skin, as he rolled her shirt up a bit, and then pressed where the wounds were.

After a few seconds, he stepped back and muttered a few words. She could feel the soft tingle of magic around her, but it was too faint. His spell wasn't working properly. She felt something invisible pressing against her chest, making it even harder to breath. She tried to move, but her body wasn't responding. She couldn't speak, she couldn't even see, and everything around her soon faded away.

Severus struggled against the magic binding him, desperately trying to break free. He had failed; he hadn't saved her from Lucius, hadn't stopped him, and then he had let Draco take her away. He had to do something, he had to find her.

He stopped struggling and took a deep breath. He needed to think; that was the only way out of the situation he had gotten himself into. And then he remembered something. Draco had taken both Hermione's and Severus' wands with him when he Apparated away, but he couldn't remember him taking Lucius' too, and it had been knocked out of his hand when Draco had entered the cabin. It could still be there.

He closed his eyes and focused on the task ahead. With only the thought he needed in mind, he said, "Accio wand!" He heard the sound on something moving in the room, and opened his eyes to find Lucius' wand lying in plain view, by the small table.

In any other situation, he would have been able to summon just about any object, using wandless magic, without difficulty, and then he realized Lucius' spell wasn't only physically binding him to the wall; it was also binding his magic.

"Accio wand!" he tried again, after a few moments, and watched it slowly roll closer, stopping by his feet.

He closed his eyes again, taking a few of the minutes he didn't have, to recover some strength. Taking a deep breath, and focusing again on the target, he summoned the wand for the third time, louder than before, a smile on his lips as he felt the spell work, and wrapped his fingers around the small, wooden wand.

He was on his feet in a matter of seconds, running to the door, but where to go next? After a few seconds, he rolled up his sleeve, baring the Dark Mark on his forearm, and then touched the tip of his wand to it. He closed his eyes and focused on Draco, but he couldn't find him.

He opened his eyes again, and stepped further away from the cabin, lost on thought. There were only a handful of places Draco could be in, where he wouldn't be found using the Dark Mark, and Severus was sure he knew most of them, if not all. It was just a matter of time.

He wouldn't bother going to Malfoy Manor; that was for sure. Many Death Eaters were staying there, so it wasn't really an option. There were only about half a dozen places owned by his family he could take her to, and he would have to search them all, one by one.

He decided to leave the ones located abroad for last, and start with the ones closest. Whether Draco wanted to help Hermione, or just give her to Voldemort, it was obvious he wanted to keep her alive, and Apparating out of the country would be too dangerous for her.

He wasn't sure how long it had been since Draco had left with her, but he was starting to fear it might be too long. He had to be fast. Reaching the places wasn't hard for Severus, but breaking through the wards took time, and he didn't know just how much she had left.

He went to a small cottage by the sea, a house in the mountains, a few apartments in London, but there was no sign of her. He was growing more worried, wondering if maybe he had been mistaken, if he should have gone straight back to headquarters, to his Master, and find out if Draco had taken her there, but something told him the boy hadn't done that.

Tightening his hold on Lucius' wand, he closed his eyes again, and Apparated in front of a pure white house. The place was even bigger than Malfoy Manor, and it had belonged to Narcissa's family for generations. As soon as his feet touched the ground, he knew he had found Hermione. He wasn't sure how, or why, but he could sense her fading magic in the air, calling for him, even through the wards.

The protection set around the house was similar to that he had found at the other places, and it didn't take him too long to break through the wards and reach the entrance.

Wand ready for whatever he might find there, he opened the door and silently stepped inside, following her magic, letting it guide him to her. He walked up the stairs, and then down one of many hallways, towards the only lit room in the entire place. The air was thicker there, her magic stronger, and he took another step closer, but then he saw movement, a door opening next to him, and froze on his tracks.

Just as Draco appeared on the doorway, and moving as fast as he could, he wrapped his fingers around his neck, and pushed him against the wall. Draco dropped what he was holding, and tried to reach for his wand, but he wasn't fast enough.

"Where is she?" Severus asked him, his voice a harsh whisper as he pressed the tip of his wand against Draco's neck. The boy didn't answer, but Severus noticed his eyes flick in the other room's direction.

"Who else is here?" he asked then, and after a few seconds of silence, he pushed him back hard, and making his head hit the wall.

"Who else?" he repeated.

"No one," he finally answered.

"What have you done to her?"

"I'm just trying to help her," he said, but Severus still didn't let go.

"Your wand," he said curtly, and Draco quickly handed it to him.

"She's in there," he said, and then Severus pulled him away from the wall, and walked into the room, with Draco in front of him. He stayed behind him until he was sure they were really alone, and then pushed him to the side and walked over to where she was lying.

He stopped by her side, on the large bed, and his hand automatically reached out to touch her, but he stopped mid-action, not sure what to do. He heard Draco step out of the room, but didn't pay him any mind. All he wanted was to make sure she would be all right.

"I can't stop the bleeding," he heard Draco mutter, as he walked back into the room, and he stood still as the boy pressed some towels against her wounds.

"What are you doing?" he asked, after a few seconds, when he tore his eyes from her and realized what was happening, pushing Draco away from her.

"I'm trying to stop her from bleeding to death," Draco screamed, and Severus turned back to her, moving the towels to the side, only then seeing how deep the three wounds were.

"I tried to stop it with magic," Draco explained, tentatively stepping closer to her again, "and it worked at first, but when we Apparated here, it just started bleeding again."

"Well, of course it did, you imbecile. You can't Apparate with someone injured this badly without hurting them even more," he said, anger evident in his voice as he lifted his wand, reminding himself he should help Hermione, and not waste his time cursing the boy, no matter how much he wanted to. It could wait until she was better.

He kneeled by her side, and took a closer look at the wounds, then tried a simple spell to stop the bleeding. He wasn't surprised when it didn't work; it was probably the same one Draco had tried. He tried a more complex one, and then another, but none of them seemed to work either. If they were simple wounds, they should have been healed by any of those spells, even after the Apparition. Only dark magic would keep them from working as they should.

"The knife," he said suddenly, standing up and turning to Draco.

"What?" he asked confused.

"The knife your father used, where is it?" he asked, annoyed by Draco's slow reactions.

"I don't know, I don't see it," he replied, after a few seconds, holding his hands up, as if to show he didn't have it.

Severus groaned in frustration and grabbed him hard by the arm, pushing him roughly out of the room.

"Find it and bring it here; fast," he said, before closing the door with a loud bang.

He knew if Draco hadn't turned them over to his Master by then, he wouldn't. He still wasn't sure why, but he knew they would be safe there, for the time being. As much as he hated it, Severus had noticed the concerned look on his face every time his eyes rested on Hermione. That was actually one of the reasons why he had sent him away; the other was, he needed the knife, and they were running out of time.

He turned back to Hermione and took one of the towels Draco had left on the bed, then sat by her side and pressed it firmly against the wounds.

Not so long ago he had been the one hurt and bleeding, and she had been there, by his side, looking after him. No one had ever done anything like that for him, taking care of him when he couldn't do it by himself, and it had made him feel uncomfortable and confused at the time, but now he understood how she had felt.

It was strange to realize she had actually cared for him. She had told him she loved him, but he hadn't allowed himself to believe her. Only one other woman had said those words to him, so long ago, the woman he thought he had loved, and she had hurt him more than he had thought possible. But Hermione was different, and that scared him as much as it attracted him.

He heard her groan and twist on the bed, but he kept pressing the towel, noticing it was already tainted in red. He heard her mutter something, and leaned closer, trying to make out the words.

"Draco?" she whispered weakly, and he froze in place, his eyes fixed on her face, not sure what to make out of what she had said. Maybe he had heard wrong, he thought, but then she whispered the name again.

"No," he answered his voice as cold as ever, "but he will be back soon."

He was angry at her, for calling Draco's name, and not his, but what right did he have to feel that way? He had been the one to push her away, even if it had been for her own good. He had made the decision, and everything that had happened to her was his own fault, or at least that is what it felt like. He had no right over her at all.

But not Draco, not him. She deserved better. He had wanted to give her a better life, a better future, and he wouldn't let her ruin it all for that arrogant child. As soon as she was healed, Severus would deal with him.

The sound of someone screaming reached her ears, and she opened her eyes. She knew whoever was screaming, they weren't far away. She tried to move, to get up, but her body didn't respond. She looked around the room, but it was dark, and she couldn't see anything familiar. She tried to call for help, but could only manage a breathy whisper.

She closed her eyes again, trying to remember what had happened. Malfoy. He had taken her to the cabin where she had met with Draco. He had tried to kill her. Snape had been there too, trying to help her, but Malfoy wouldn't let him.

Snape. He had been the one to take the memories away, but Malfoy had done something to her there, to bring them back. She could remember the images flashing in front of her eyes before the searing pain, and then the darkness.

"Who sent you there?" she heard a man ask, his voice low and menacing, a tone she instantly recognized as Snape's. But who was he talking to? "How did you get to the cabin? How did you know where she was?" he asked again, after a few moments.

"She called for me," Draco's voice answered, although it didn't sound like it usually did. He sounded weak, or maybe scared.

"Who did?"

"Hermione," he replied.

"Why would she ever call you? You are a Death Eater."

"So are you," the boy answered, his voice now filled with anger.

"Don't test my patience, boy. I doubt anyone would even notice if you simply disappeared."

"We have been working together. I have been helping her."

"Don't lie; it will only make things worse."

"It's not a lie," he replied, a little desperate.

"So you have been the one she has been sneaking off to meet?"

"Yes."

"Why?" he asked, and when he received no answer, another loud scream filled the air. "Why did she go to you?" Severus repeated, coldly.

"She thought I was the one she had been working with before. She thought I was you."

"Why would she think that?"

"Because I told her so," Draco answered, with a tinge of arrogance.

"How did you know about me and her? Who told you?" he asked, and again received no answer. She could hear Draco screaming again, and when it stopped, he sounded defeated.

"My aunt Bellatrix told me."

"So that is how you got out of the dungeons?"

"Yes. But she said she would kill me if I failed. I'm in no better position than I was there."

"Do you actually think I would believe any of this? That you did all this because your aunt threatened you?"

"Me? She will kill my family, if I don't do as she asks."

"What did she ask you to do, then?"

"She wanted me to find out if you had really taken her memories away. She suspected you were a traitor, and she was right."

"Don't talk about things you do not understand, boy," Severus said, angrily.

"What, you think I haven't noticed? The way you were looking at her, when you got here. Is she the reason all of this happened, the reason why you turned to the Order?"

"She has nothing to do with this, and whatever you think you saw, you were wrong. She was just the means to an end, and you should leave her out of this."

"Why is it so hard to understand? I will protect my family, even if it means betraying everything they believe in."

"If you only wanted to know what side I was on, why did you help her tonight? Why did you attack your own father?"

"I did it for the same reason you did."

"I don't believe your aunt sent you to her just to find out what side I was on. She provided important information to the Dark Lord, and I think you were the one spying for her. Is that why you stayed close to Hermione? So you could spy on her, pass information to the Dark Lord that would make you look good?"

"She would have killed me!" Draco yelled. "I did what I had to do."

"What was the real reason why she sent you?" Severus asked again.

"Rodolphus," he finally answered. "She wants her husband back. She said if I didn't find out where he was fast, then I had to kill Hermione, and find some other way to get to him."

"Kill her? She wanted you to kill her?"

"Yes, but I d…"

"You coward!" he interrupted. "You say you care about her, try to fool me with empty lies, when all along you were just waiting for the right moment. Were you supposed to take her body to the Dark Lord, or was your aunt planning on taking all the glory for herself?" Severus asked, angrily.

"I wasn't going to…"

"Where is she?" Severus suddenly asked.

"What?"

"Where. Is. She," he repeated, his voice low and menacing.

"I don't know," Draco answered.

"I'm not finished with you, boy. And trust me, if something happens to Hermione…" but he didn't finish the sentence.

She heard loud footsteps moving down the stairs, and then some faint ones, stepping into the room.

"You are awake," Draco said, as he lit a few candles, but she didn't answer. She simply looked at him, his swollen eye, and his split lip. She still couldn't fully understand what she had just heard.

"How are you feeling?" he asked softly, as he stepped closer to her. "Right, the spell," he said, as an afterthought, and reached for the wand lying next to her on the bed.

With a few muttered words and some complex movements, she felt the muscles in her body loosen. She moved her head to one side, then the other. It hurt, but not too much. She moved her arms and legs too, but when she tried to sit up, she felt a sharp pain in her belly.

"They're not fully healed yet, and you have lost a lot of blood. You need to get some rest."

"Where is he?" she muttered, her expression hard, her eyes fixed on his.

"You heard," he said, after a few moments. It wasn't a question, but a statement.

She opened her mouth to speak again, but he interrupted. "It's not what you think."

"Is it not? You lied to me, you used me. Were you going to kill me yourself? Or maybe have someone else do it for you, like you did with Dumbledore."

"Hermione, please, I wasn't…"

"Where is he?" she asked again, her voice firm, even as her eyes filled with tears.

"He's gone to find my aunt."

"If she's not alone…"

"Why do you care about him?" he asked angrily. "He only used you, to get back in the Order."

"And so did you," she said, bitterly. "Take me to him."

"No," he said, and shook his head firmly. "No. You are still too weak, you can't Apparate. And even if you could, if any other Death Eater saw you, you would be dead within minutes."

"Take me there," she repeated, as she tried to get up, wincing at the pain.

"There's nothing you can do to help him, and he doesn't deserve you risking your life for him."

"You have no right to decide that for me. Now will you take me to where he is, or do I have to find him myself."

"You are really willing to take that risk? Why?"

"I don't have to give you any explanation, you don't deserve them, and you know it. I'm asking for your help."

He seemed uncertain for a moment, but then sighed and offered her his hand, which she took. He helped her up, and then touched the back of her head with his wand. She shivered at the cold feeling running down her body, and then turned to him, as he repeated the same action, casting a strong Disillusionment charm on himself as well. He reached forward then, but she stepped back, hesitant.

"You're not strong enough to walk; you won't make it to the door," he said, calmly.

Realizing he was probably right, she wrapped her arms around his neck and let him carry her out of the house. As soon as they were outside, he put her down for a moment, rolled up his sleeve, and pressed the tip of his wand to the Dark Mark on his forearm. She watched him, confused, as he closed his eyes, his breathing slow as he remained frozen in place for minutes. She was starting to worry, but then he suddenly opened his eyes and looked back at her. He reached inside his robes and retrieved her wand.

"You will probably need this," he said, as he handed it to her. Then he wrapped his arms tightly around her again, and Apparated them both away.

As soon as her feet touched the ground, she stepped away from Draco and pressed her hands firmly against her ears. The screams were deafening. She looked around the barely lit room, surprised at what she saw.

Severus was standing in the centre of the room, his back to her, and another figure was lying on the floor, in front of him, writhing and screaming in pain. She tried to step closer, but a hand on her arm stopped her, and she turned around to see Draco, his eyes wide and fixed on her belly.

She looked down; trying to see what was wrong, but the Disillusionment charm was too strong, so she lifted it. She hadn't felt the pain until then, too distracted by the image in front of her, but as soon as she saw her wounds bleeding again, it came back full force. She shook her head slightly, pushing the pain away from her mind as she stepped closer, yanking her arm free when Draco tried to stop her.

There were two more figures lying on the floor, a few feet from Severus, and they were both clearly dead.

Her eyes went back to him when the screaming stopped, and she was surprised to see Bellatrix smirk at him.

"Is that the best you can do?" she asked, mockingly, even when her voice was hoarse from screaming. "I knew you were a traitor, I always knew. And now the Dark Lord will know, too. He will finally see _I_ am his most faithful servant, that _I_ am the only one he can trust."

"You are crazy. You think he trusts anyone? He wouldn't hesitate to kill you. What makes you think you are so special?"

"He will protect me, and he will kill you and your Mudblood whore," she said, an evil smile on her lips that was soon wiped away when Severus yelled "Crucio!"

"You cannot kill me, Snape," she said, still smiling, when he lifted the curse. "He would know it was you, and you would be dead before you had time to make up more of those stupid excuses of yours. I can see right through you. What is it about the little witch that made you do all this? She must be a really wild fuck, to make a cold bastard like you fa…" but she didn't get to finish the sentence as, with an angry growl, Severus fired the curse again.

She knew Bellatrix was right. If he killed her, Severus would probably be murdered as well. Hermione had loved him once, and she probably still did. She couldn't let him die because of her, no matter what the witch had done. She was still confused about her feelings, about everything, especially after what she had heard him say to Draco, but Severus had risked his life to save her before; the least she could do was return the favour. She had to stop him before it was too late. No matter how much Bellatrix deserved to die, she wouldn't let Severus do it. She owed him that much.

She took another step closer to him, gritting her teeth to stop herself from crying out in pain. Her clothes were drenched in blood again, but she couldn't stop.

"Snape," she said, as she stopped next to him, but he didn't seem to listen. She repeated the name, but he was too focused on the woman in front of him, his face contorted with rage as he held his wand firmly in place.

She took another step forward, starting to feel dizzy, and shook her head, trying to clear her mind. She lifted her hand, and slowly placed it on top of his, as she whispered, "Severus."

His eyes finally left Bellatrix as he looked down at his hand, not sure what was happening. Her bloody fingers wrapped around his, as she pushed his arm down, making him lift the curse. She could hear the woman panting in the floor, but she didn't say anything.

"If you kill her, he will kill you," she whispered, when his eyes met hers. She didn't need to say the name, they both knew who she was referring to.

"I don't care," he simply muttered, but when he tried to move his hand, she held it firmly.

"It's not worth it," she said, her voice weak, as she felt all her strength leave her body.

"Hermione," she heard Draco yell, as he ran to her and wrapped his arms around her, just as she was about to fall. The room grew darker around her, but she could still see Severus turn back to Bellatrix, the angry look back on his face as he muttered words she couldn't make out; but there was no mistaking the green flash of light that lit the room before everything went black.


	44. bastard

She heard soft voices around her, and she slowly opened her eyes to find herself at headquarters. She had lost count of the times had she woken up like that lately. She wanted to sit up, but then remembered her wounds, and decided against it.

"Hermione?" someone asked, and she saw Harry and Ron move closer, looking at her with concerned expressions.

"Hey," she answered, forcing herself to smile, if only to help them calm down.

"How are you feeling? Does it hurt?" Ron asked, and she simply shook her head. They must have given her something for the pain, because she remembered how much it had hurt before.

"So what happened? How did you get hurt?" Harry asked. Didn't they know already? Someone had taken her there; why hadn't they told them what had happened.

Maybe there was a reason why they didn't know, and she would wait until she found out "How did I get here?" she asked, after a moment, ignoring Harry's questions.

"Kingsley brought you," Harry answered, and she frowned.

"What's wrong?" Ron answered, looking worried again.

"It's nothing, really. I just don't remember him being there."

"What do you remember?"

"Good, you are awake! How are you feeling, dear?" Madam Pomfrey interrupted, as she pushed both boys to the side to get closer to her. Hermione couldn't be happier to see her. She wasn't sure how to answer Ron's question. "Don't speak, dear," she said, when Hermione opened her mouth to answer. "Out, out, both of you, out," she said, after a moment, when she realized her patient was uneasy. "I have to check my patient, and you both need to leave"

She heard them groan and complain for a few moments, and then they left, and the room was quiet again.

"Let's take a look, now," Madam Pomfrey said, as she carefully rolled Hermione's top up. "Good, it's healing quite nicely," the woman said, and Hermione sat up a bit, trying to see the wounds. All the blood was gone now, she remembered so much blood. But the cuts seemed so small; barely pink lines remained to mar her skin. "The lines should be gone in a few more hours," she added, when she followed Hermione's gaze. "Luckily, it won't leave a scar."

"How…?" Hermione started, her fingers tracing the marks, and she was too surprised to finish the sentence. She had been stabbed, and the wounds had almost killed her. It was strange to see they were no more than thin reddened lines now.

"You were lucky Kingsley brought you here so fast," the woman replied. "He called Severus right away. Some impressive bits of magic he performed. The potions…" she said, dreamily. It was obvious the mediwitch envied Snape's skills, and Hermione couldn't help but smile at her.

She wanted to ask more about what had happened, but she wasn't sure where to start. Madam Pomfrey probably wasn't the best person to ask, so she just lay back down and let her do her job in silence. A few more minutes had passed when she heard a knock on the door, and they both looked up, startled.

The door creaked opened slightly, and then she heard Kingsley's deep voice from the hallway. "Can I come in?"

Madam Pomfrey quickly walked to the door, opening it all the way.

"How can I help you?" she asked, as she stood in front of Kingsley.

"Actually, I needed to talk to Hermione," he said, looking past the witch's shoulder, his gaze on Hermione. His eyes flicked down for a moment too long, resting on her bare abdomen before going back to her face.

"I don't think that is a good idea, Kingsley. She needs some more rest," she replied.

"It is important. I promise I won't disturb her," he said, his voice firm, as his eyes turned back to the witch before him.

"It's okay, I'm not tired," she answered, sitting up and rolling her shirt back down. The witch huffed, but let him in all the same.

"I would like to speak with her alone, if you don't mind, Poppy," he said, and after a few moment's consideration, the witch finally walked out of the room with another huff.

She remained silent as she watched Kingsley turn to the door, wand in hand, and set a few wards around the room, so that no one would hear what they were saying. Then, just as calmly, he walked to her side, pulled the only chair around closer, and sat by her bed.

"Thank you," she muttered, after a few moments.

"For what?" he asked, genuinely confused.

"I was told you were the one that brought me here."

"You don't need to thank me," he said, and relaxed a little in the chair.

"How long have I been here?"

"You got here last night."

Well, that wasn't so bad; she was afraid it might have been longer. They stayed in silence for a few minutes, until he finally spoke.

"What happened last night?"

"How much do you know?" she asked. She wasn't trying to dodge the question; she just wanted to know what had happened.

"Only what Severus told me. He called me, and when I got there I found Bellatrix Lestrange dead on the floor. There was blood everywhere, and when I looked around, I saw you on the floor as well, and him kneeling next to you, trying to stop the bleeding. I thought you were dead," he said, so low she could barely hear it.

"Bellatrix is dead?" she asked, confused. She had asked Snape not to kill her, but she also remembered the flash of green light before she passed out.

"Yes. Severus said he had killed her."

"And there was no one else in there?"

"Just two more Death Eaters," he said. "You were expecting me to find someone else?" he asked then, carefully searching her face, trying to read her expression.

"I…I don't know. It all happened so fast, and I was hurt and I was bleeding so much. It's hard to separate one event from the other, they are all just running together right now," she sighed.

"Let's start with the facts, then. You were stabbed," he said, calmly.

"Yes."

"Who did it?" he asked. Should she say the truth? She considered it, and took a deep breath before answering.

"Lucius Malfoy." Kingsley nodded; he wasn't surprised. He probably knew that already, she thought.

"Why?"

"He knew Snape was a traitor. I guess he wanted to punish him for his betrayal to the Death Eaters."

"Then why take you as well?"

"He knew I was helping," she answered, after a few moments.

"But Lucius Malfoy wasn't there when I found you. Where is he?" he asked, then.

She wasn't sure what the answer to that question was. She could remember the stabs, the blinding pain, and then Draco storming in and attacking his father. Then he had done something else, she wasn't sure what, but Lucius had vanished. He had probably made a Portkey and sent him away, she thought.

"I'm not sure. I think he Apparated away at some point. I can't remember exactly what happened," she said, her voice suddenly trembling at the memory of what that man had done to her.

"I understand," Kingsley said, and she was glad he didn't push it any further.

"I wish I could be of more help."

"I know about Draco," he said, after a few moments. His voice as calm as usual, his eyes still fixed on hers, and she was sure he could hear her heart beat wildly from where he was sitting.

"You do?"

"Severus said he had contacted you; that his aunt had ordered him to get information through you, and then kill you."

"I'm not… I…" she stammered, unable to think straight.

"He said you didn't know that."

"I didn't," she answered. "He contacted me after I'd lost my memories. He made me believe he was the one I had been working with," she added, and he nodded. She might not have been sure before, but now she knew she could trust Kingsley.

"But it had been Severus all along," he said. It was a statement, not a question.

"He told you?" she asked, surprised. He nodded.

"He said Draco used you to get some information. Is it true?"

"No. Not really," she answered. "I never would have done anything to risk the Order, or Harry. You know I…"

"I know," he interrupted. Then he waited in silence for her to continue.

She nibbled on her lower lip, trying to find a way to explain something she didn't fully understand herself.

"I only gave him information once, and knowing he would pass it along." Kingsley remained silent, and she was glad to see he wasn't judging her, just listening. "One night, after Harry, Ron and I had left headquarters, he contacted me. He said he had been tortured by his aunt, and he would be killed if he didn't give her something good. I told him the three of us had left headquarters, nothing more. I knew Voldemort would find that out soon, anyway."

"Severus told me you were attacked, soon after. Maybe Draco followed you somehow…"

"No, he didn't. I don't know how they found out where we were, but it wasn't Draco."

"That is not what Severus said. He believes Draco has been using you to gather information, and has been passing it along to his Master."

"I don't know what Draco has been doing for certain, but I can tell you what I think," she said, and he motioned for her to continue. She wasn't even sure why she was defending him, after what he had done. He had lied to her; he had used her. He had taken advantage of her vulnerability, of the fact that her memories had been taken away, and still, she was defending him. "He helped me. Us. That night we were attacked, he found us before the Death Eaters got here. If he hadn't, we would have been captured, killed."

"So you trust him?" he asked, after another short silence.

"I cannot say I do, with what I know now. But he helped us, and he wants Voldemort dead as much as we do. Maybe he would be willing to help the Order somehow."

"Severus insists on making him top priority, and on turning him over to the Ministry as soon as we find him."

"What? No, you can't do that," she said, reaching for his hand. "Kingsley, please, you can't do that. He is a Death Eater. He will be left to die if the Ministry gets him."

"You really believe he is not faithful to his Master?" he asked, serious.

"Yes, I do."

Taking a deep breath, he seemed to consider it for a minute, before finally saying, "I will see what I can do."

With a smile that was both a hopeful and grateful, she watched him as he got up and walked to the door.

"Oh, and Hermione…" he said, turning back to face her.

"Yes?"

"Nobody else knows about this; not all the facts. I would appreciate it if you kept it that way."

"Of course," she answered.

Lost in thought, she watched him lift the wards he had set before, and then step out of the room. Her eyes remained fixed on the door even after he was gone.

How could she have been so stupid? Draco had shown up, saying he was the one she had been working with, and she had simply believed him. She had been so desperate to know what she had forgotten, that she had believed it all at face value. Now Snape wanted him dead; or wanted the Ministry to take him which was basically the same thing. He didn't care that Draco had saved her, that he had been the one to stop Lucius when he was about to kill her.

She had been a fool to believe Snape had ever cared for her at all. He had said everything would be all right, and she had believed him. That last night they had been together, he had promised he would take care of her, but he hadn't. He had treated her like dirt ever since.

"Here, take this, dear," Madam Pomfrey said as she stepped back inside the room, bringing her back to reality.

"What is it?" she asked, when the witch handed her a small cup full of what she guessed was some kind of potion. It actually looked like mud.

"It is for the pain, dear," she explained, and Hermione reluctantly drank it. "We are lucky to have such a gifted potions master within reach. Those wounds would have taken weeks to heal otherwise. His knowledge of Dark Arts… Not that I approve, of course, but the can be very useful, sometimes. They obviously were, in your case."

"They were?" she asked, after swallowing the last

"Of course! The wounds wouldn't have been so bad, otherwise. I don't know exactly what it was, but there was some very dark magic involved," she said, before taking the cup from Hermione's hand. "Well, I think you are ready to leave, now. If you need something else for the pain, just tell me or Molly if I am not here, although I doubt it will be necessary," she said. "He did a very good job indeed," she repeated, in a low voice, as she walked back to the door.

"I can go?" Hermione asked, surprised.

"Yes, dear, unless you are feeling unwell, in any way."

"No, I am fine," she said, quickly getting off the bed. The pain was completely gone, she realized.

"You should thank him, I think. He never gets the credit he deserves," the witch said, with a small smile. "I believe he is still here, in the meeting," she added, before leaving, and Hermione wondered for a moment if maybe Madam Pomfrey had some kind of crush on Snape. She shook her head and laughed at the idea, even as an uneasy feeling of jealousy settled in the pit of her stomach.

It took her a few moments to change into clean clothes, and then she left the room. As she walked down the long hallway, she could hear voices coming all the way from the library. Whatever the meeting was about, it was a heated one.

The voices grew even louder as she approached them, and she decided she would wait to talk to Snape. But then she heard her name mentioned, and stopped by the door, surprised.

"That's true, but Hermione said…"

"Well, I don't care what she says," Severus' voice interrupted. "That moronic child just walks around, doing whatever she wants, and you all allow it. She has put her life in danger, and those of her friends, too, time and again. Lucius Malfoy could have easily killed her. She has been working with Death Eaters; it doesn't matter whether she thinks they are good or not. She is also responsible for some of the information that was leaked to the Dark Lord, and if I hadn't killed Bellatrix, Granger would now be chained to a wall somewhere, wishing she was dead. You have to do as I say."

Without thinking, she suddenly threw the door open, marched to where he was standing, and without giving him time to react, she slapped him hard on the face.

"You bastard," she hissed, and the room grew impossibly quiet. She was distantly aware of the fact that everyone was staring at her in shock, but she couldn't care less.

His cold eyes narrowed, but he offered no other reaction as he watched the anger appearing in her eyes. He remained silent while she began her tirade.

"What gives you the right to talk about me in that way? After all you have done, you think you have a right to judge me?" she said, her voice low, her fists clenched as her body shook in anger. She could see the apprehension in his eyes, the surprise at her behaviour. Good. "How dare you accuse me of leaking information? You, of all people."

"Miss Granger," he said, in a calm voice. "I do not think this is the best place for this discussion."

"That is because there is nothing to discuss. You are not worth it," she said, coldly, before turning around and storming out of the room.

"Miss Granger," she heard him call after her, and heard his footsteps as he followed behind, but she didn't stop. "Hermione," he said, in a lower voice, and she felt the anger instantly return full force.

"Don't you dare," she hissed, as she turned around to face him. She could see movement behind him, and noticed some of the Order members were moving closer to the door, trying to hear them. "Don't you dare call me that," she continued with her voice lower. "After everything that you have done to me, you don't have the right to call me anything, and especially not that."

"Hermione, is everything all right?" she heard someone ask from behind him, and saw a few figures walk closer to them, but she was too focused on Snape to pay them any mind.

"How could you?" she asked. "After everything that…"

"Not. Here." he interrupted in a hiss.

"Oh, what is it, _Severus_? Afraid they will find…" but she never got to finish the sentence. It all happened so fast, she couldn't even react. In a matter of seconds, he drew his wand and, with a fast, complicated movement, he silently summoned a small statue from a nearby shelf, turned it into a Portkey, and transported them both away.

"What do you think you are doing?" she all but screamed as soon as her feet touched the ground again, yanking her arm free from his grasp.

"I warned you twice that was not the place for this discussion. You didn't listen," he said, coldly.

"So what, you decided to kidnap me?"

"You are free to leave any time you like, but if you want to continue this discussion, it will have to be here."

"Oh, of course, I forgot you are the one that makes all the decisions. Do you want me to just sit quietly and follow your every command?"

"Well, that would be good, for a change," he spat, his anger finally starting to show, but it no longer served to scare her.

"I don't even know why I bother!" she said, lifting her arms in surrender. "You will do whatever you want, no matter what I say," she almost yelled, and started walking to the door. "How could you do that to me?" she asked, her voice suddenly soft, turning back to face him after just a few steps.

"Do what?"

"You took my memories away," she answered, sounding defeated. "If you simply wanted to push me away, there were other ways, you know?"

"I was trying to keep you alive," he said, as he took a step closer to her.

"There were other ways."

"Like what?"

"I don't know, but it wasn't your decision to make. You didn't give me any choice; you made the decision on your own, and never asked me."

"I did what I thought was right."

"It wasn't up to you to decide," she repeated.

"Everything would have been all right if you had stayed put after that."

"Stay put?" she asked with anger back in her voice. She couldn't believe what she was hearing. "I had lost all memories of the last few months, and you expected me to stay put? I needed to find out what had happened. You should have known what my actions were going to be."

"How was I supposed to know you would run away with the first Death Eater that crossed your path?" he asked, just as angrily.

"Maybe you should have expected me to act like a…what was it? Oh, yes, _moronic child_."

"Well, maybe I should have," he spat back menacingly, stepping closer still.

"I asked for your help, remember? You refused to even answer my questions. You asked Remus and Kingsley to lie to me, too. What was I supposed to do?"

"Go back to your life. That was the reason I did it in the first place, so you could have a life to go back to."

"You just kept making all the decisions for me. I am not a child; I can take care of myself."

"Oh, yes, I have seen that. How are your wounds healing, by the way?"

"You were in as much trouble as I was last night."

"Only because I tried to help you."

"And yet, you went alone, and got yourself disarmed, tortured, and bound within minutes. If Draco hadn't shown up…"

"If Draco hadn't shown up?" he interrupted. "You think he was there to help you? He was there to help himself, to help his family. You were just the means to an end."

"So, is that what I was?" she asked, even angrier than before, because being angry was easier than being hurt.

"He doesn't care about you. He was using you."

"You weren't? You only used me to get back in the Order, and when that was done, you simply erased my memories. That would make it all so much easier for you, wouldn't it?"

"That is not what happened and you know it," he said, barely a foot away from her now.

"You had no right," she said angrily. "You made me believe you cared."

Then, suddenly, his lips were on hers, silencing her protests, his fingers threading through her hair, keeping her close. Surprised, it took her a few moments to realize what was happening.

She raised her hands to his shoulders, pushing with all the strength she could muster, and he finally stepped back.

"What are you doing?" she asked angrily, willing her heart to slow down. He didn't answer, he simply stared at her, as if he was as surprised about what he had done as she was. "What the fuck do you think you are doing?" she yelled, her fists finding his chest and hitting him as hard as she could.

His reaction was so fast she didn't even see his hands move. It had probably been just his instinct kicking in. He easily wrapped his fingers around her wrists, and pushed her back, so that he had her hands pinned above her head, and her body held firmly against the wall by his own.

He didn't kiss her this time; he just held her there, his face a few inches from her as they both breathed raggedly and stared into the other's eyes.

"Haven't you played enough with me?" she asked, her voice low, almost broken.

He looked taken aback by the question, and then something flashed in his eyes; maybe hurt, maybe guilt. She couldn't be sure. His face slowly inched forward, his eyes still locked on hers, and then his lips touched hers again.

It started slow, almost tender, and she tried to push him away again, but he wouldn't move. She parted her lips to protest, and he took the opportunity to push his tongue inside her mouth. No matter what had happened, it felt so good to be in his arms again. It only took a few moments for all conscious thought to leave her mind, and then she found herself returning the kiss.

No matter how slow it had started, it had already turned deep and heated. He let go of one of her arms, so he could bury his fingers in her hair, and then tilted her head to the side, trying to find a better angle.

She moved her hand behind his head too, trying to pull him even closer, and seeing she wouldn't push him away again, he let go of her other arm too, his hand moving down her body, and then making its way up her thigh.

Moaning at the contact, she lifted that leg slightly, and felt him grind his hips against hers. The kiss was turning desperate, only broken for a second when the need for air became overwhelming.

She had missed his touch, his contact, so much. Even when she couldn't remember, she had still missed it. No one had ever made her feel so good. One of his hands moved from her hair to her breast, as he touched it in a way that had her moaning within seconds. He still knew how to drive her crazy. The hand on her leg moved between them, and she heard the soft clinging of his belt, as he unbuckled it. It wasn't an easy feat, when he was still moving his hips against hers, at the same time.

She distantly heard the sound of a zip, and then both his hands were on her thighs, lifting her and helping her wrap her legs around his hips. His hand moved back between them as he pulled her skirt up, and then fumbled with her knickers a bit, trying to push them to the side, before finally tearing them off in frustration.

He simply pushed himself inside of her; neither of them could wait any longer. His hand moved back to her breast as his lips nibbled on her neck. A million things should be in her mind, she knew, but at that moment, all she could think of was how good he felt inside her, how the little sounds he made as he thrust inside of her were like music to her ears.

She pushed her heels into his thighs, silently begging him to go faster, harder. He instantly complied. It was amazing, the easiness with which they found a rhythm to suit them both, how they moved almost in unison.

She felt her muscles start to tense from the pleasure he was giving her, but then he groaned and stiffened much too soon. His thrusts became almost frantic, and he claimed her mouth again as he reached his climax. It took him a few seconds to realize she still hadn't. His hand found it's way between them again, only this time his fingers stopped by her clit. His thumb rubbed on it, faster and harder every time, and when he pinched it, her world shattered.

She arched off the wall as she groaned in pleasure, her muscles contracting around him, her hands on his back, pulling him closer to her, her nails sinking into his shoulders.

Then it was all over, and they were both panting, looking at one another, not sure how it had happened, how it had gotten so out of control. He slipped out of her body and helped her stand, before taking a few steps back, his expression unreadable.

She took a moment to fix her clothes before meeting his eyes. Now that it was over, coherent thoughts plagued her mind, along with memories of their fight, and of all the bad things that had happened between them.

"This doesn't change what you did. This doesn't change anything," she said, after a moment of silence. He simply looked at her, not saying a word, not moving a muscle, simply watching her with that same expression she had seen before. It looked more like guilt, this time.

She wasn't sure what to do, what to say, all she knew is that she had to get away from there. And so, without another word, or another glance in his direction, she walked to the door, pulled it open and stepped outside, Apparating back to headquarters, to her friends, to the place where she felt safe, the place where she was alone amongst them all.


	45. trust

She Apparated to headquarters, but hesitated as she reached for the doorknob. She knew they would be waiting for her, worried, and wanting an explanation on what had happened. What would she say to them? How much of the truth was she ready to share? How much of it was she ready to accept herself?

If it were up to her, she would have stayed by the door forever, just so she wouldn't have to face anyone, but she knew they would go looking for her, if they hadn't already. There was no point in delaying the inevitable, so with a deep sigh, she opened the door and stepped inside, promising herself it would go fast, and she would be alone in her room in no time.

As she walked down the hallway, she heard voices in the library. Someone said her name, and then Snape's. Apparently, Harry and Ron were trying to get the others to go looking for her.

"Hermione," Kingsley's calm voice called, as she walked by the open door, and as she stopped, she saw both Ron and Harry turn to her startled, and then ran her way.

"What the hell happened?"

"Did that greasy bat hurt you?"

"You should call the Minister, have him arrested or something."

"Where did you go?"

"What did he do?"

All the questions were drilling their way into her brain, the voices an annoying buzz she just couldn't keep away.

"Stop," she whispered, closing her eyes, but they kept on talking. "Stop," she repeated, much louder this time, and welcomed the silence that finally settled in the room.

She opened her eyes slowly and watched not only Harry and Ron, but also most of the other Weasley boys, Kingsley, Remus, Tonks and a few more Order members staring intently at her, all of them shocked at her behaviour.

"I am fine," she started, trying to sound calm. "Nothing happened. Professor Snape did not hurt me, and no, we are not turning him in. Whatever needed discussing, it has been done, and it will remain between Professor Snape and me, so there will be no point in nagging," she said, throwing Ron a meaningful look. "Now, if you don't mind, I would like to go up to my room to rest," she finished, and without giving them time to respond, she turned back around and made her way up the stairs, calmly but quickly, holding her breath until the bedroom door was firmly locked behind her. Then she slid down to the floor, her back against the door, as she rested her head on her knees and let the tears fall.

She had wanted to remember so badly, and now that she did, a part of her wanted those memories to go away again. That would make everything so much easier.

She could still feel her skin tingling from where Snape had touched her, kissed her, and she had felt his need, as deep as hers. But did it mean anything to him? Was he just using her? She could remember him saying it didn't mean anything, that it was just physical, but that had been so long ago, so much had happened between them since then. Did he still feel the same way?

A memory of their last night together made its way into her mind. She could remember the way he had held her in bed, the way he had whispered her name by her ear. That night, she had been sure he had cared. Then Voldemort had summoned him, and everything was ruined.

The memory charm, the lies, the way he had treated her, the things he had said to others… could she really leave all that behind? Because, after what had happened that day, there was no fooling herself anymore. She was in love with him, even after all the things he had done, she loved him like she had that night, but was that enough? He wasn't the smart choice, and probably wasn't the right one, either, and she had to make up her mind. Was he worth fighting for? Was he worth all the pain? Should she just forget the past and listen to her heart, or leave him behind and move on?

A knock on the door startled her, but she welcomed the distraction. She got up, dried the tears away as best she could, and took a deep breath, to calm down.

"Hermione, open up," Ginny called, and after reaching for her wand and performing a small glam on herself, she let her friend in.

"Are you all right?" Ginny asked seriously, as she stepped inside, but as soon as Hermione nodded in response, all the excitement came back to her voice. "Merlin, is it true? Did you really slap Snape? I cannot believe I missed that!"

"It was nothing, really," she said, with a sigh. Would she ever hear the end of it?

"Nothing? What are you talking about? Ron told me you charged into the room, called Snape a bastard and slapped him hard on the face. He said the look on the git's face was priceless."

"I wasn't feeling well, I heard him say some nasty things about me, and I overreacted. I never should have hit him."

"What? You cannot be serious. You are like our new hero, Hermione. We have all dreamt of doing what you did today, don't you dare regret it," she said, a look of awe on her face.

"It doesn't matter, it was still wrong. Violence doesn't solve anything," she said, making Ginny groan in frustration. Just a few months ago, if she had heard someone had slapped Snape, she would have probably reacted like Ginny, but now everything was different.

"I think all those pain potions are messing with your brain," Ginny said, as she got up. "Maybe you really do need to get some rest. I'll try and keep Ron and Harry away for a few hours," she said, and Hermione gave her a thankful smile.

As soon as Ginny was out, she locked the door behind her and sat on the bed. Maybe she was right, and all those potions really were messing with her mind. She saw a small pile of clothes on her bed, and reached for them. It was what she had been wearing the previous day. She took the robes and laid them on the bed next to her. The cuts were gone, and so was the blood. It was as if it had never happened.

She was torn between hanging the robes in her closet and throwing them away when she noticed something heavy in the pocket. Trying to keep her pulse steady, she reached inside, her fingers soon touching the cold metal she knew was there.

She pulled the coin Draco had given her, her eyes fixed on it as it lay on the palm of her hand. When Lucius had untied her, back in the cabin, she had used it to call Draco, not sure it would work, since she couldn't use her wand, but knowing there was no one else she could call.

She was brought back to reality when she took a closer look at the coin. There was a single word written on it, 'please' and the numbers had changed, indicating the time it would turn into a Portkey, barely five minutes away.

Was he calling her? Why would he want to make contact? A part of her feared it would be some kind of trap, but the rest knew she could still trust him, for some reason she still could not fully understand.

It was almost time, and she could feel the heat coming from the coin, but what should she do? Her logic was fighting her curiosity, but the second one seemed to be winning. She wanted to know what he had to say, and she needed the answers only he could provide. She hesitantly moved her hand forward, still not sure what she would do, and then reached for her wand again, held it firmly in one hand and with the other finally touched the Portkey.

She held her breath as she was transported away, and as soon as her feet hit the ground, she looked around. She was in a large room, mostly empty, except for a chair in one corner, where Draco sat, almost hidden by the shadows.

"You came," he said, his voice low and calm, and when she turned to him, her wand ready, he held up his hands, showing her he was unarmed. She took another long look at the room, making sure they really were alone, and then finally lowered her wand.

"What do you want?" she asked, dryly.

"I think we need to talk," he said, as he slowly stood up, but when he took a step closer to her, she stepped back. "I am not going to hurt you, Hermione," he said, his hands still in plain view. "I just want to talk." She was already starting to regret her decision.

"Talk?" she asked, her anger flaring again. "And what exactly is it that you want to discuss?"

"I am sorry about what happened, I never meant…"

"You are sorry?" she asked, and then laughed humourlessly. "And what exactly is it that you are sorry about, Malfoy?" she asked, and she saw a hurt look cross his face at her use of his last name. "Are you sorry you lied to me, that you used me? Or maybe you are only sorry I found out, is that it?"

"That's not…"

"I wonder how you were going to kill me," she said, interrupting him again. "Were you planning on making it fast, or to drag it on for hours? Would you have stabbed me, like your father did? Taint your hands with my dirty blood?" she asked, and saw the hurt in his eyes her words caused, but that didn't stop her. She stepped closer, slowly circling him, taunting him. "I don't think you have the guts for it, not yet. I think you would have used an Unforgivable, do the dirty work from far away. Am I right, _Malfoy_?" She didn't wait for him to answer, she simply continued. For some reason, it was making her feel better. "You are just like the rest of them. I don't know why I ever trusted you, why I ever thought you were different. You lied to me; you were lying the whole time."

"I was not," he yelled, stepping closer to her and grabbing her by her shoulders, shaking her.

"Everything you told me was a lie. You just wanted information," she continued, watching the rage, the guilt, the desperation on his face.

"That's not true. I never betrayed you. I never told her anything," he said, still shaking her until she pushed him away.

"And why should I believe you now?"

"You don't have to believe me, you know the truth. Even if you don't see it now, you know it," he said, and she remained silent. It was true. "My aunt forced me to contact you, told me what to say; she would have killed me if I had refused. But everything else was true," he said, regaining some of his control, although he still sounded a bit desperate.

"Even if it were true, it doesn't matter any more."

"Then what does? I helped you in everything I could. I saved you and your friends when the Death Eaters went after you."

"Were you the one to tell them where to find us too?"

"Of course not," he said, apparently surprised by her question.

"Then how did they know where to find us?"

"I have no idea, but I did not tell them."

They stayed in silence for a few moments, Draco's eyes searching her face for some kind of understanding, of forgiveness.

"Last night," he said, his voice almost a whisper as he stepped closer to her, his hand tentatively reaching forward, until his fingers touched the place where her wounds had been. "I helped you, remember?"

"You helped your father as well," she said, but the anger was almost gone by then.

"I had to. Severus would have killed him, and even if he hadn't, the Aurors would have."

"He deserves it."

"Maybe, but he is my father. I cannot let that happen."

"He will come back. He will find me, and the next time, I might not be able to call for help."

"He won't hurt you again, I promise," he whispered, his eyes fixed on her belly, where his fingers remained.

"Why weren't you there? When Severus called the Order, why did you leave?"

"He had killed my aunt; it was only a matter of time before the Dark Lord found out. I had to make sure my mother was safe."

"Of course," she said, and took a step back, watching his hand fall back to his side, and his eyes meet hers again.

"I knew he would take care of you, I knew you would be safe. If the Aurors had found me, they would have arrested me, and then I would not have been able to help anyone."

"I think you are only helping yourself, Draco."

He watched her in silence for a few moments, and then moved to retrieve something from his pocket. She didn't even bother lifting her wand; she knew he was not going to hurt her.

"Remember this?" he said, as he lifted his hand, Hufflepuff's cup resting on his palm. "I got this because you asked me to."

She didn't speak, her eyes fixed on the small cup. She was surprised when he stepped forward and offered it to her. She lifted her eyes to his, questioningly, and he nodded. After a few moments, she took it and put it away in her own pocket, not even bothering to check if it was the real cup. She knew it was.

"I don't know what that is," he said, "but I am sure the Dark Lord will be furious when he finds out it is gone; and he is bound to find out soon."

"Will he know it was you that took it?"

"Maybe not right away, but it will not take him long to figure it out. My aunt dead, both my parents missing… even if I return to him, he will still know it was me."

"Then don't go back; the Order can help you. Now your mother is safe, what keeps you there?"

"It is not that easy. You can't just quit. It is a life sentence."

"It doesn't have to be. We will win this war, and then you can be free again."

"If he finds out what I did, it will not matter how much protection you can offer. He will find me, and he will make me wish I were dead."

"Give me some time, let me arrange a meeting. We can protect you."

"Time is precisely what I don't have. Severus thinks I am working for the Dark Lord, and he will make sure I am dead before his cover can be blown."

"I will talk to him then. I will make him understand," she offered, and he smiled for a moment.

"Why do you care about what happens to me?" he asked, stepping closer to her, his eyes locked on hers, searching for the answer.

"I don't know," she answered, with a small shrug, and was surprised, to watch him lean closer and tilt his head to the side, to kiss her.

"Don't," she said, when his lips were less than an inch away, and he stopped, looking down at his chest, where her wand was pressing firmly. "I might believe you are on our side, or want to be, but that doesn't change what you did. You lied to me, and you used me; I cannot forget that."

He smiled at her again as he pulled back.

"Maybe some day you will. I will do my best to make sure that happens."

"Keep your coin with you," she said, quickly changing the subject, wanting to end that conversation before it could begin. "I will talk to someone in the Order, and then contact you again. I am sure we can reach an agreement."

"If you think so, then I will do as you ask," he said, with a small nod.

"How do I get out of here?" she asked then, looking around the room, wondering if she would be able to simply Apparate away.

"Activate the Portkey," he said, and with a nod, she waved her wand over the coin and felt her body being transported away, back to headquarters.

Her bedroom materialized in front of her again, and the sound of movement behind her startled her; she turned around quickly, wand ready for whatever she might find there.

"Dear Merlin," she gasped, when she found herself face to face with Kingsley, his wand aimed in her direction.

"Hermione," he said, in recognition, and lowered the wand. After a few seconds, she did the same.

"What are you doing here?" she asked her hand moving to her chest as she willed her heart beats to go back to normal.

"I came up here, wanting to talk to you, and imagine my surprise when I find the room locked and warded, and no one inside."

She looked at him for a moment, before saying, "Draco Malfoy called me."

"He did?" he asked, looking slightly surprised. When she nodded, he continued. "And you just went to see him, alone?"

"I already told you, I trust him."

"I can see that."

"In fact, I needed to talk to you about that."

"I am all ears," he said, as he walked back to the door and leaned against it.

"He needs protection, and so does his mother. I am sure he will help our side, if we can keep him safe."

"Keep him safe," he said, thoughtfully. "In how much trouble is he, exactly?"

"Not in as much as he will be soon, once his Master discovers he has been helping us. Me."

"Given Severus' attitude towards him, protecting him might be a bit difficult."

"Yes, he is afraid Snape will tell Voldemort he is a traitor, to protect his own cover."

"Severus' work is risky. He will do whatever it takes to stay alive, and remain a spy. If he doesn't trust Draco, then he is in a world of trouble."

"I can talk to Snape, and convince him Draco is on our side."

"You sound very confident. Severus is not an easy man to manipulate."

"I will make sure he understands. But Draco will need some convincing; he is not sure the Order can protect him."

"I am not sure he is worth the risk."

"Just talk to him, hear what he has to say. Just give him an opportunity."

"He lied to you before, Hermione. He tried to infiltrate us."

"I trust him, Kingsley. I hope you trust me enough to do this. Please."

"All right," he sighed, after a few moments. "How do we do this?"

"We don't have much time, can you go now?"

"Go where?"

"Here," she said, handing him the coin. "It's a Portkey. That will take you to him."

"I hope you are right about him, Hermione, and about Severus too."

"Could you call Snape here, before leaving?" she asked, and he smiled at her, waving his wand, making the silvery mist of a Patronus appear in front of him for a second, before vanishing again.

"He should be here soon."

"Thank you, Kingsley," she said, and he smiled at her again.

"We will talk about this when I return," he said, and she stepped closer to him, and used her wand to activate the Portkey again.

She watched the spot Kingsley had just vacated for a few seconds. She couldn't believe he trusted her so much, so blindly, and she didn't think she deserved that trust. He had lied to her, she reminded herself. He had lied when she had questioned him about her forgotten memories, but she couldn't really hold it against him. She knew he thought it would be best for her. Being mad at Severus and Draco was hard enough, she didn't need any more anger; what she needed was someone she could trust, and that someone was Kingsley.

She walked over to the mirror and took a look at herself. Her hair was still messy, and she was still wearing the same dress she had earlier, when Snape had taken her away. The same dress he had rolled around her waist, so he could touch her, fill her body. No, she didn't need that reminder when she was about to face him again. She quickly opened her wardrobe and pulled out some jeans and a tank top. Not too informal, but comfortable all the same. She was just trying to fix her hair when she heard voices downstairs. He was there already.

She unlocked and opened the door, and made her way down the stairs.

"What are you doing here?" she heard Ron spit at Snape.

"Manners, Weasley," he retorted, in a cold voice, as he closed the door behind him.

"Severus, did something happen?" Molly asked, as she stepped out of the kitchen.

"That is precisely what I was going to ask. Kingsley summoned me, saying it was something important."

"Kingsley?" Molly asked, surprised. "I thought he had left, I haven't seen him in an hour, at the very least."

"I asked him to call you," Hermione said, as she walked down the corridor. "I need to speak to you."

"It could not wait until the next meeting?" he asked, raising an eyebrow, but she could tell he was just keeping appearances. She could see it in his eyes, there was no mock, and no intent to hurt. Not that it made any difference.

"I am afraid not," she said, but as she walked closer to them, Ron stood in front of her.

"You want to talk to him?" he asked, surprised.

"It is important, Ron."

"Well, I don't think you should, Hermione. You cannot trust him."

"It is all right, really," she said, smiling reassuringly at him. It was nice of him, trying to protect her that way; especially when almost everyone else seemed to be doing the exact opposite.

She walked to the library then, opened the door, and stood by it, waiting for Snape to walk inside.

"What are you doing?" Ron asked, quickly walking to her side. She could see the twins and Ginny by the kitchen door, not wanting to miss a word that was said, and Harry, walking over to them as well, and stopping right behind Ron.

"I already told you, Ron, I need to speak with him."

"Well, you are not staying with him alone," he said, as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.

"Please, Ron, I have something I need to discuss with him in private."

He was about to protest when Molly's voice interrupted.

"Ronald, leave Hermione alone and get in here," she said, from the kitchen door. He looked about to protest, but a single look from his mother made him change his mind. "You too, Harry, dear," she added, sweetly, and Hermione gave her a thankful smile before turning back to Snape.

"Well?" she asked, still waiting by the door. He looked at her for another moment, and then walked past her, into the library.

She took a few moments to ward the room, even though she knew Molly would keep most of the house's occupants away. When she was done, she turned back to him, to find him standing by the window, his back to her.

"We need to talk about Draco," she said, going straight to the point, and watching him stiffen slightly at her words.

"I am not sure there is much to discuss," he replied, still not turning around.

"He is willing to help the Order, to betray Voldemort," she said, and noticed him cringe ever so slightly at her use of the name. She didn't really care.

"And what exactly makes you think it is not the other way around?"

"I trust him."

"And you think that is enough? He is a Death Eater; it is his job to gain your trust."

"I trusted you when no one else did, was that a mistake too?" she asked, and he finally turned around.

"That was different."

"How so?"

"I was forced to do what I did, to save you. They were going to kill you."

"Draco has saved me too," she said, keeping calm. "My friends as well."

"You cannot trust him."

"Why not?"

"I have known him since he was born; I know the family he grew up with, the things he was taught. He does not care about anyone but himself."

"Maybe you are wrong," she said, more to taunt him than because she believed her own words.

"He doesn't love you," he snapped, furious.

"What does love have to do with anything?" she asked, just as angrily. She was glad to see her words had shocked him into silence.

"You cannot trust him, and I will make sure you see that."

"What difference does it make to you? I was never anything more than a fling, something to pass the time, wasn't I? Why do you even care about what happens to me?"

"That is not how it was," he started, but she interrupted before he could finish.

"Stop. Just stop," she said, holding up her hand. "I am sorry, but I will not do this," she said, taking a deep breath. "I don't want to fight over this any more, it is pointless. What's done is done, and I have learned my lesson."

"What lesson is that?" he asked, his voice like velvet once more, as he walked to where she was standing.

"Never to let my heart take control again," she said, and as he reached his hand forward she turned around and walked to the table.

With a flick of her wand, the golden cup she had left in her bedroom appeared on the table.

"What is that?" he asked, as he walked closer, standing barely an inch behind her. He was so close she could almost feel the heat coming from his body. She closed her eyes for a moment, trying to control herself. Then she opened them again and answered his question.

"Maybe that will make you trust him," she said, and felt him lean forward, to get a closer look. "That was Helga Hufflepuff's cup. It is a Horcrux."

"How did you get it?" she heard him ask, amazed.

"Draco got it for me." He stood still and silent, and after a few moments, she spoke again. "I knew only someone bearing the Dark Mark could get to it, and I asked him to retrieve it for me. He risked his life, and almost got himself killed to do it."

"Maybe he just wanted to make sure you would still trust him, after learning the truth about him."

"He gave it to me before his father's attack," she answered. He did not reply. "A few Death Eaters died in the process, and he knows Voldemort will discover it is missing soon."

"I hope Draco didn't leave any witnesses," Severus muttered.

"He didn't, but now with his aunt dead, they will suspect him for sure. He sent his mother away, somewhere safe, but he believes you will turn him in to keep your cover."

A knock on the door startled them both, and she quickly waved her wand again, vanishing the cup.

"You have to help him," she said, turning around to face him.

"Why?" he asked.

"Hermione?" Kingsley's voice called from outside the door.

"Because I am asking you to," she said, her eyes locked on his. He was so close, it was hard to think. "Please." It took him a few more moments to answer.

"I will, for now; but if he makes one mistake, anything that risks exposing me, or if I suspect he is working against the Order, I will kill him myself," he said, and she nodded.

"Thank you, Severus," she said, her voice low, and saw a surprised look on his face at her use of his name. He leaned closer to kiss her, but as soon as his lips brushed hers she pulled back, shocked at what she had almost done, at what she had almost let happen.

Without another word, she walked to the door, lifted the wards and pulled it open. Kingsley was standing outside, a warm smile on his lips even as his eyes searched the room behind her, and stopped somewhere over her shoulder; on Severus, she was sure.

"Are you ready?" he asked, his eyes going back to her, his smile growing at her questioning look. "Get your coat, then, it's cold outside."

"Hermione, are you going out?" Molly asked, from somewhere down the hallway.

"Yes, Molly," Kingsley replied for her. "I am taking her out for a few drinks. I promised I would when she was feeling better. She needs to relax a little," he said, turning his head in the direction the witch's voice was coming from.

"Oh, you are going with her?" she asked, and Kingsley nodded. "All right, then. Don't bring her back too late. Have fun," she said then, and Kingsley nodded before turning back to Hermione.

She wasn't sure what exactly was going on; maybe Kingsley wanted to talk about what had happened during his meeting with Draco, but then why say he was taking her out? She didn't dare turn around and look at Snape.

"Shall we?" Kingsley asked, then, and she decided she would follow his lead. If he was saying all that, then there surely would be a good reason. Keeping her eyes ahead, she walked out of the library and down the hallway, stopping by the entrance door to take her coat and put it on. As soon as she was ready, Kingsley opened the door for her, but just as she was about to walk outside, she heard footsteps behind her.

"Miss Granger," a cold voice called, and she slowly turned around to face Snape. She was taken aback by the angry look on his face. "I believe these are yours," he said, flicking his wand once between them.

She saw a flash of light, and then a black piece of cloth appear out of thin air. It took her only a second to realize what that was, the pair of knickers he had torn off her body earlier that day, the ones she had left behind in her haste to leave his place. The bastard!

With a speed she didn't know she possessed, she took them before they fell and hastily pushed them inside her pocket, glancing around to make sure no one had seen them before throwing him a hateful look. He didn't smirk in return, and that surprised her. He didn't seem pleased at what he had just done. In fact, he looked just as angry as she felt.

Taking a deep, calming breath, she turned around and stepped outside the house, taking Kingsley's arm as she reached him, her back to Severus as the Auror pushed the door shut behind them.


	46. trouble

He stood on the sidewalk across the street; not close enough to hear, but at least he could see them through the large window. Kingsley was sitting with his back to the window, Hermione facing him.

He wasn't even sure why he had followed them, really. Everything that day had been outside the realm of normal, and most of his reactions were not at all like him.

First, early that morning, she had stormed into the meeting and slapped him in front of everyone. Who the bloody hell did she think she was? True, he had been saying some nasty things about her, but that was nothing new. Besides, what was he supposed to say? He needed to convince Kingsley and the others that they couldn't trust Draco Malfoy, no matter what she said, or how much she claimed the boy had helped her. He was a Death Eater, and knew Snape was really working for the Order. He had to be stopped before it was too late.

After that, she had started yelling at him, and he knew if he didn't act fast, everyone would know the truth, that they had been involved, that he had been the one that had erased her memories. He needed to silence her, but it didn't look as if she was about to stop the ranting, so he had to act before it was too late. Granted, taking her away might not had been the best idea, but what else could he do, hex her into silence? He did not even want to imagine what would happen if the truth about them was discovered.

Again, he had lost control around her. The weeks he had been without her had seemed eternal, and now that she remembered everything that had happened, he hadn't been able to hold back any more. His resolution had slipped a few times in the past, those moments when he had let his guard down, with a part of him wanting things to be like before. Those times he had kissed her, it had taken all his resolve and self control to pull back, and he had had to remind himself he was doing it for her. Few things in his entire life had put his self control to the test the way she had, the way she still did.

He had seen her pain afterwards, and he knew she was right to blame him for what had happened, but he had done what he had thought was right at the time, why couldn't she understand that? He had taken those memories away to save her, to give her a better chance at life. She had no idea how much that had cost him, the kind of anger he had had to face for not being able to take her dead body to his Master, as he had been ordered to. It would have all been worth it if she had taken the opportunity he was offering, if she had moved on with her life. But she hadn't; he should have seen that coming.

He had been surprised when Kingsley had called, since they had had a meeting barely hours before, and more so when Hermione stood in front of him, saying she had been the one the Auror had contacted him for, that they needed to talk. After what had happened earlier, he had thought she wouldn't want to see him, at least for some time.

As soon as she had started speaking, he knew going there had been a mistake. Draco Malfoy again. Why was she so convinced he wanted to help her? What the boy wanted was a chance to have his way with her. He knew what he was like, knew how his mind worked. The previous night, after killing Bellatrix, he had been too concerned about Hermione's health to even try and stop him from running away, but he wouldn't let that happen again. That boy knew too much, had seen too much, and could easily ruin everything he had been working for, for years. Next time they met, would be the last.

Then she had shown him one of the Dark Lord's Horcruxes, one she said Draco had managed to get for her. Was there more to the boy than he thought? Was that just another trick to fool her? He had seen the boy cared about her, or at least he thought he did, but Severus knew he cared more about himself. He probably didn't know what he had just handed the enemy, how important that simple cup was. If the Dark Lord found out…

But why couldn't she see Draco for what he really was? Why was she so convinced he wanted to help the light? She thought he cared about her, that much was rather obvious, but what did she feel for him? Not that it mattered to him, of course. Why would he care about how she felt? Why should he? He had no claim over her, and wasn't sure he even wanted to.

Still, Severus had given her up because that way she was safer, not so that she could be with another Death Eater. Not with Draco Malfoy. How could she just forget the way the boy had treated her for years, and the way he had lied to her the last few weeks? He didn't deserve her; she was too good for him.

Trying to win her back was tempting. If she would end up with a man that was not good for her, then why shouldn't that man be him? But too much had happened between them, too many secrets, too many lies. She would never forgive him for it, and he would never ask her to.

He had stood behind her as she showed him the cup and explained what had happened, but it wasn't easy to concentrate with her so close. He could feel the heat of her skin, even though he wasn't touching her. He could smell that sweet scent, and couldn't help remembering the one time he had woken up to it.

She had asked him to help Draco again then, as if that cup was proof enough of the boy's intentions. Did she always think the best of people? That would explain why she had trusted Severus, believed everything he had said when everyone else had thought him a traitor, a murderer. She had helped him without asking questions, she had simply believed in him. It was dangerous, and foolish; trusting people that way would get her killed.

For her, he had agreed to give the boy a chance. He owed her a lot more than that. Her voice had been low as she had thanked him, and his name had easily slipped from her lips, as if it were the most natural thing in the world. He couldn't tear his eyes off her; that flush in her cheeks, those red lips moving sensuously as they mouthed his name, her eyes lit with determination. She looked so beautiful. Not sure what he was doing or why, he had leaned forward to kiss her, but she had pulled back, realizing what was about to happen in the very last second; it would seem she was finding controlling herself almost as hard as he did.

Then she had left the room, walking after Kingsley, going out "for a few drinks." What the hell did he think he was doing? He had seen the way Kingsley behaved around her, and knew perfectly well what he wanted. He was just taking advantage of her state, her vulnerability. He was a grown man, head Auror; he should have more sense than that.

What he had done next had been as much of a surprise to her as it had been to him. He didn't know what he wanted to achieve by it; maybe simply show Kingsley he couldn't have Hermione, that she was with him; but was she? He hadn't considered his actions until after it was done, when he had seen the anger in her face; no matter what he did, he always ended up hurting her.

But he didn't know how to act, how to do things differently, how to make it better; he had never found himself in this position before, had never wanted to.

He had been with other women, but none of them had meant a thing to him; and the one he had cared about, the one he had trusted, the one he had never had, had chosen someone else; had betrayed his love and friendship when he was still too young to understand. At the time, he had thought himself in love; now he knew better. He wasn't sure how he felt for Hermione, he didn't think himself capable of love, not after everything he had seen, after everything he had done, but he did know the way he felt now had nothing to do with anything he had felt before. The other woman looked so unimportant in comparison, resembling more a youthful crush than anything else, and certainly nothing deeper than that.

Even when he knew that, he had no idea what he should do about it.

He, Severus Snape, confused? Even the thought was laughable. But it was the truth, and it was all her fault, her doing.

Across the street, behind the window, he saw her eyes lit in amusement at something Kingsley said, and then start to laugh. So free, so happy. So beautiful.

He might not be right for her, but neither was Draco. And neither was Kingsley.

She was talking animatedly, her hands moving around in big gestures as she spoke, and he found himself wondering what she was saying. A part of him wished it was him, and not Kingsley, the one she was talking to so freely. After a few moments, she rested her hands back on the table, and he saw the Auror reach forward and rest one of his hands on top of hers. She continued talking, as if nothing had happened, but pulled both hands away, pretending to fix her hair before placing them on her lap.

A smirk crept to his face at the sight. Maybe he needn't have worried about him so soon.

A flash of pain on his forearm brought him back to reality; his Master was calling.

"Severus," he heard him say, as soon as he stepped into headquarters. He could see the tension, and knew something was wrong. "Follow me," Voldemort hissed, and walked down the hallway, until he reached his studio.

"You wanted to see me, my Lord?" he said, as soon as they were both inside.

"Of course I did," Voldemort replied, banging the door shut with a flick of his wand. "Why else would I have summoned you here?"

"Certainly, Master," he replied, bowing slightly. He knew better than to say anything else when Voldemort was that upset.

"Where have you been?" he asked, and Severus could hear the anger in his voice. "I was told you left moments after arriving back from your mission yesterday, and no one has seen you since."

Severus remained silent for a few moments, not sure what to say, and that seemed to be enough to further anger Voldemort. With a flick of his wand, he sent him flying across the room, his head banging hard against the wall, before landing on the floor, so close to the fireplace his sleeve caught fire and started burning his arm. He pushed himself away fast, using his other hand to extinguish the fire before standing tall again. He knew better than to try to heal himself in front of the Dark Lord, so he just stood straight.

"Answer me!" Voldemort screamed then.

"I was summoned by one of the Aurors from the Order."

"Why did you not inform me of this?"

"I did not think it was important," he said, bowing slightly, but that didn't seem to help calm his anger. Voldemort stepped closer to him, and with another flick of his wand send the piles of books lying on the desk flying in his direction. Severus tried to use his arms to protect himself, but one of the books hit him square on the face, and he could feel a trickle of blood falling from his broken nose. Another book hit his eyebrow, the blood blinding one of his eyes.

"That is up to me to decide. I sent three of my Death Eaters on a mission last night, after you left. None of them returned. Would you happen to know anything about that?"

"No, Master," he replied, and watched him walk over to where he was standing and stop in front of him. His black eyes met red ones, and then he felt Voldemort prod his mind, trying to see what he was hiding. With practiced ease, Severus showed him what he wanted him to see, and hid the truth away again. He knew Occlumency would not keep him safe forever; Voldemort would find out the truth sooner or later.

"I sent other Death Eaters to look for them this morning," he said, appearing to calm down slightly, "but all they found was a few faint traces of Magic. I assume you know nothing about that either."

"You think something happened to them? Could it be that they were just too cowardly to remain faithful to you, Master? That maybe they simply ran away?" he asked, careful to sound respectful as he spoke.

"No," Voldemort replied, dryly. "Bellatrix was with them. If they have not yet returned, then something must have happened."

"No one in the Order mentioned anything about an attack."

"That kind of information, they would keep secret. I want to know what happened."

"I have gained their complete trust, Master. If they know something, I will find out. Maybe it was the Ministry's doing?"

"None of my informants provided any useful information."

"May I ask where they were sent, what the mission entailed?"

"You have already been told all you need to know. Now I want…" he started, but fell silent when the door opened.

"Master?" a hesitant voice came from the other side, as a masked man peered inside the room.

"I believe I said no interruptions," Voldemort hissed angrily, turning to the man and aiming his wand straight to his chest. Severus watched silently as the man fell to the floor, screams echoing around the room as his body shook.

"I am sorry, Master," the masked man replied, gasping for breath, his voice barely a whimper. It was shameful. "But I thought…"

Stupid. That was the only word that could describe him; being a Death Eater he should know better than that. Another flash of light hit him, and more screams reached Severus' ears.

"I do not care what you think," Voldemort spat angrily, as he lifted the curse. You are not to interrupt me."

"Yes, Master. I am sorry, Master," he said, trying to get up and bow deeply at the same time. His legs were still weak from the effects of the spell, and he stumbled twice before he managed to get on his feet.

"What is it that you want?" Voldemort asked him then, in an almost bored tone, an evil smirk crossing his face as he watched the man stammer, trying to answer and at the same time fearing he would be cursed again.

"We w-went looking for the Malfoys and Lestrange as y-you ordered, Master."

Voldemort didn't speak or even motion for him to continue, he simply stared at him in silence. The man began stuttering again.

"W-We found Rabastan, M-Master, but Lucius' wife and son are g-gone."

"Gone?"

"No one has se-seen them, My Lord. I-in fact, no one has seen Lucius' s-son for a few d-days now."

The anger was back in Voldemort eyes, and Severus remained silent as the dark wizard waved his wand once more, sending the Death Eater flying out of the room, making him hit the wall on the hallway and fall unconscious to the ground. Then, he spelled the door shut once more, and turned to Severus again.

"What is going on?" he asked. Severus had only seen him that angry a few times, the memories still firmly etched on his mind.

"I do not know, Master."

"I find that hard to believe, Severus. You seem to know everything that happens."

"I can contact the Order if you like, Master. Find out what happened, and if they had anything to do with it."

"You and Bellatrix were not on friendly terms, were you?"

"No, my Lord. She refused to believe I was a faithful Death Eater, even though I have proved my loyalties many times."

"She blamed you for what happened to her husband and Lucius. She had asked me, repeatedly, to 'dismiss' you, and now she suddenly vanishes from the face of the earth. Highly suspicious, would you not agree?"

"I would not do anything to harm her without you permission, Master. I am loyal to you above all else."

Again, he felt Voldemort enter his mind, and he concentrated on creating the images he needed to show him, to try to convince him he had had nothing to do with her sudden disappearance. Severus showed him Bellatrix taunting him, provoking him, and him ignoring her every time. Part of it was true, but most of it was set up to show her abusing the trust Voldemort had given her, the power she had and used over the other Death Eaters because of their Master's favours.

"You will find out what happened, Severus," Voldemort said, after a few moments. "I want you to find the Malfoys as well."

"Yes, Master," he replied, bowing.

"There is no time to waste; if you do not give me answers tonight, then I will have to send someone else, and you would not want that to happen," he threatened.

"I will not disappoint you, My Lord," he said.

"What are you waiting for?" he spat then, spelling the door back open. Without wasting another moment, Severus stepped out of the room, paying the other Death Eaters no mind as he made his way to the door and left headquarters. There was a lot to do, and he only had a few hours. He had to act fast.

The first thing he needed to do was find Draco. He was sure the boy was responsible for his mother's disappearance, and he needed to know if he was really willing to switch sides, or if he should simply hand him over to Voldemort. He had to talk to the Order too, but that could wait.

Wrapping his fingers firmly around his wand, he closed his eyes and concentrated on the small café Kingsley had taken Hermione to, but as soon as he Apparated there he noticed they were gone. Although a part of him had hoped they would still be there, now that he had a good excuse to storm inside and take Hermione away, he knew that was probably not the best idea; especially considering the way he must look, bruised and bleeding. He decided to Apparate to the Order's headquarters, in case they were back there, before resorting to dark magic and tracking spells.

As soon as he stepped into the house he saw Kingsley standing in the hallway, Molly right next to him.

"Where is she?" Severus asked, interrupting them.

"What? Severus, what happened to you?" Molly asked worriedly, but his eyes were fixed on Kingsley as he repeated the question.

"What has happened?" the Auror asked, but Severus simply shook his head. "I don't think there is anything you need to discuss with her," he continued, neither of them paying Molly any attention when she asked what was going on.

"That is not up to you to decide. Where is she?"

"Who?" Molly asked, confused, and seeing Kingsley was not about to answer, he turned to the witch instead.

"Miss Granger."

"Hermione? What do you need her for? I think you should go see a healer, Severus."

"I need to speak to her now, where is she?" he insisted.

"I believe she is in her room, she should be back in j… Severus?"

But he wasn't listening to her any more, nor was he paying attention to Kingsley, who was trying to stop him as he made his way for the stairs. When the Auror stepped in front of him, Severus quickly drew his wand and aimed it at him menacingly.

"Do not test my patience, Shacklebolt," he hissed in warning, before hastily walking past him and up the stairs. As soon as he reached the top floor, he turned to her bedroom, opened the door, stepped inside, and charmed it shut again.

A loud gasp made him turn around, only to find himself face to face with a shocked Hermione. It took him a few seconds to realize she only had her underwear on, and then it took all his concentration to stop his eyes from shamelessly roaming her exposed body. After a few seconds, he heard voices outside, and someone banging on the door, and without turning around, he cast a silencing spell on the room. That seemed to bring her back to reality.

"Dear Merlin, what has happened to you?" she asked worriedly, reaching for the robes lying on the bed and putting them on before walking over to him.

"It is nothing," he said dismissively. "We need to talk."

"But you are bleeding," she said, reaching for her wand and turning back to him. "What happened?"

"The Dark Lord found out Bellatrix is gone. He was not in the best of moods."

"Does he know?" she asked, and he could hear the fear in her voice. But what was she scared of? Voldemort would never know she had had anything to do with it. Could it be that she was scared for him? He shook his head, both in answer to her question and his own, and heard her sigh in relief.

"Sit," she said, and when he did not move, she reached for his hand. He hissed in pain and pulled his burnt arm away, startling her. "Oh, I am sorry," she gasped. "Merlin, what has he done to you?" she muttered to herself, as she took a closer look at his arm.

"Nothing that is life threatening."

"Oh, stop that already. Sit down so I can heal the cuts," she said, but didn't attempt to take his hand again. With a sigh, he stepped closer to the bed and sat.

"What was his excuse this time then, if he didn't know you had killed Bellatrix?" she asked, as she kneeled next to him on the bed and started healing the wounds. The entire situation was so familiar. Many times she had helped him that way, had stood by his side, asking questions out of curiosity and not to judge him. He hadn't realized how much he missed those better times.

"He doesn't need an excuse. You may not understand, but the only reason he didn't kill me today just because, is that he trusts me."

"How could you ever believe in him, ever been loyal to such a monster?" she asked, and he stiffened.

"The kind of power he possesses, the way he sells his ideas; it is seducing. It takes time to realize what it really is about, and by then you are in too deep, and there is no way out."

She remained silent for a few moments, as she carefully waved her wand and fixed his broken nose. It was painful, but he did not complain. He enjoyed having her that close, and the fact that they were talking, and not fighting.

"Give me your arm," she said, after a few moments. "I am not sure I can heal this," she told him, taking a closer look, careful not to touch the burnt skin.

He didn't say anything, just reached for his wand and waved it over the arm, making the burns vanish. Startled, she looked at him for a moment, and then back at the now perfect skin on his arm.

"You will have to teach me to do that, sometime," she said with a small smile before standing up again. "So, is there a reason why you stormed into my bedroom as if you owned it, and locked everyone else outside?" she asked, but with no trace of anger in her voice.

"As I said before, I needed to speak to you," he answered, standing up as well.

"What about?"

"I need to see Draco."

"What?"

"The Dark Lord has many questions and some of them only Draco can answer."

"No way," she said, shaking her head.

"Excuse me?"

"No, it will not happen."

"I am not asking for your permission, Miss Granger," he said, just as calmly as before. "You wanted me to help him, did you not? You want him to stay alive. I need to speak with him, and it has to be now."

"Why?" she asked, and he tilted his head to the side, considering the question.

"The Dark Lord sent Bellatrix and the other Death Eaters on a mission, and now they are missing. He also knows Draco and his mother cannot be found. He only gave me a few hours to learn what is going on. I need to speak to him now."

"How do I know you won't just turn him in, and that you won't hand him over to get killed?"

"You don't," he said simply. "But if you want my help, then you will tell me how to find him." She looked at him for a few moments, a thoughtful look on her face. "You asked me to trust you, now I ask the same of you."

She remained silent another moment, then nodded and turned around. He waited as she walked to the desk by the window, opened the top drawer and retrieved something golden. Then she walked back to him and he could see she was holding a galleon in her hand.

"What is that?" he asked.

Instead of answering, she reached for her wand and tapped the golden coin once. Silent, she kept her eyes fixed on the galleon, and after a few moments she reached for his arm and placed the coin on the palm of his hand.

"What is it?" he repeated, taking a closer look.

"It is a Portkey. It will be activated in two minutes, and it will take you to him."

"Where?"

"I don't know, but you don't need to worry about that. No one else will be there. Will you help him, then?" she asked.

"That will depend on what he says, and how willing he is to cooperate."

He felt the coin grow hot against his hand then, and looked at her one last time before being transported away.


	47. Inferi

Severus felt the room around him spin, and he tightened his hold on his wand even more. He might trust Hermione, but he didn't trust Draco; he had to be prepared for anything.

As soon as his feet touched the ground, he raised his wand and turned around, ready to attack if he had to, but he was in a dark room, and could see nothing. He remained still for a few seconds, trying to decide what to do, and then the door opened, and he saw a figure standing in the dimly lit hallway.

"Hermione?" the figure called, and Severus instantly recognized Draco's voice.

In a matter of seconds, he had silently disarmed the boy, rendered him unconscious and bound him to one of the chairs he had found in the room he was in. It had been so easy he could have laughed. He made his way out of the room, wanting to see where he was, but stopped as he reached the open door, knowing there could be someone else nearby.

"Homenum revelio," he murmured. He had been right; there was at least one more person in the building.

With an ability that came from years of working as a spy, he noiselessly left the room and started down the hallway, stopping by every door and repeating the spell, looking for the other occupant. The house he was in did not look familiar, and was rather large, with many corridors and rooms; it took him a long time to search them all, but finally he found the right one, on the main floor. If he had not been searching the house so thoroughly, he would have probably missed it; the door was almost hidden in a dark corner, painted in the same colour as the wall.

He took a few steps closer, and as he reached for the knob he felt the magical wards around it. He stared at the door for a few moments, surprised; none of the other doors had been warded. As silently and carefully as he could, he started working on lifting the wards; they were not excessively complicated ones, but they were set in layers, and getting through them took time.

After over ten minutes of working, he finally lifted the last ward, and took another step back. Whoever was in there might have been alerted of his presence, and they might be waiting for him to break in, ready to attack. He took a few moments to decide whether he should open the door silently or simply blast it open instead. He chose the second option.

He stepped forward again, and stood by the door, his back flush against the wall. He took a moment to focus, and then, with a few quick flicks of his wand, blew the door open. Not standing in front of the door had been a wise decision, he thought, as he heard a voice scream at least half a dozen curses his way as soon as the door was gone.

The smoke caused by the small explosion impaired his vision slightly, but he could not wait until it was gone. Instead, he turned around and moved his arm to the side, towards the doorway, so that he could fire back without exposing himself. The voice inside kept yelling curses, and that gave him a clue as to where the person was standing; as the third silent curse flew from his wand, he heard a pained scream, but it had not been enough to stop the attack. A few more curses flew his way, one of them barely missing his hand, which he retrieved just in time.

He lowered his body, so that he was resting one knee on the floor, and then moved his arm back around the doorway. This time he did not fire any curses, but with a few well chosen words, a dense smoke began to rise from the ground. He waved his wand around his head next, casting a bubble charm that would allow him to see throw the smoke, and then got up again and carefully stepped inside the room.

He could see one thin figure standing a few feet from him, partially hidden behind a chair, their wand held firmly as they turned to one side, then the other, trying to discover where Severus was standing. Instead of attacking right away, he took a moment to search the room for other occupants, but he could not see anyone.

Carefully stepping around the figure, he ducked a few blindly aimed curses and stopped right behind them. Many would think attacking while the enemy's back was turned was an act of cowardice; Severus had learned the hard way to take chances as they came; what was so honourable about fair fights, if they increased your chances of being killed? The entire purpose of a fight was to win, and smart wizards did whatever was necessary to secure victory.

"Expelliarmus," he yelled at the figure, and watched it fly and hit the opposite wall, its wand falling by their side. "Accio wand," he said next, putting her wand in his pocket before vanishing the dense smoke and lifting the spell around his head.

With his wand aimed straight at the dark figure trying to get up, he stepped closer, only then realizing who it was. "My, my, what a surprise," he said with a smirk, calmly watching Narcissa Malfoy struggling to get back on her feet.

"Severus," the witch gasped, as soon as she heard his voice, a look of hatred crossing her eyes as she finally managed to stand.

"What, may I ask, are you doing here? The Dark Lord is looking for you."

He saw the hatred in her expression turn to rage, and then the witch yelled, "You killed my sister," as she ran to him, her arms in front of her, clearly aiming for his neck. She was a smart woman, why would she ever try to attack him unarmed? He really had no idea.

Just as the witch was about to reach him, he stepped to the side, and with a swift move of his arm, he grabbed one of Narcissa's wrists, twisted her arm back and then pushed her away, so that she fell to the floor, her eyes narrowed in anger as she rubbed her wrist.

"Don't make me curse you, Narcissa," he said, as she moved to get up again. "You know I will do it if I have to."

"He sent you here?" she asked, and he saw a flick of fear cross her eyes, before it was once again covered by anger.

"Yes," he replied, knowing the witch meant the Dark Lord. That was not exactly right, but it was still all the explanation he was willing to offer.

"Where is my son? What have you done to him?" she asked then, scrambling to her feet once again, but not trying to attack Severus.

"I have told you the Dark Lord is after you, and all you care about is your son?"

"Of course," she said, "I will not let you take him."

"You will not let me?" he asked, amused. "Exactly how do you think you could stop me, if that is what I came here to do?"

"I will do whatever it takes, Severus; you know it."

"Your son is fine, Narcissa; at least for the time being," he told her.

"You killed Bellatrix," she said, angrily, and he merely smirked.

"She had it coming," he replied.

"She was right, wasn't she? So was Lucius. You are nothing but a filthy traitor."

"Is that what you think?" he asked, lowering his wand but still keeping it firmly held by his side.

"It is not what I think, it is what you are."

"You are talking about things you do not understand; it must be a family trait," he said calmly, and she remained silent. "You never shared the Dark Lord's beliefs, does that not make you as much a traitor as you think I am?" he asked, and she did not respond. "I am sure you know it was your beloved sister that freed your son from the dungeons at headquarters, is that right?"

"She saved Draco's life; he had been left there to die. You had taken an oath to protect him, and still did nothing to help him."

"Did she, by any chance, explain to you exactly why she had released him?" he asked, ignoring what she had said about the oath.

"She did it to save him; she did it to protect our family," she replied, making Severus laugh.

"So is that what she told you, or what you simply assumed? Have you, by any chance, asked Draco himself to explain what happened?" he asked her then, and he could see the anger slowly leaving her eyes, replaced by confusion and curiosity. "Of course not," he answered his own question. "How could your sister, a dark, violent, dangerous and clearly unbalanced witch, have any ulterior motives for helping poor Draco?"

"What are you talking about?"

"She was using him, Narcissa. She took him out of the dungeons only to use him against me. She did not care about him or any of you at all; she only cared about herself."

"That is not true," she said, shaking her head. "My sister cared for Draco, and you killed her."

"She sent your son to the Order," he finally said. "She told him to approach one of Potter's friends for information, and to kill her afterwards."

Narcissa shook her head, but remained silent.

"Do you know how she convinced your son to do it?" he asked then, with a sneer, and she shook her head again. "She threatened to kill you and Lucius."

"That is not true, you are lying!"

"Why would I lie?" he asked, tilting his head to the side. "I have my wand, you are unarmed. If I wanted to kill you, I would have long ago."

"You tried to kill my husband."

"Lucius," he said, "is the one to blame for everything that happened to him; not me. He tried to kill me once, and I spared his life because of our past together. He foolishly attempted it again, and you can be certain I will not hesitate when I find him. He is lucky Draco got to him before I did, or he would be long gone by now. Still, I might not have a chance to kill him myself, if the Dark Lord finds him first."

"Severus, please," Narcissa said suddenly, stepping closer to him. "Please, you cannot let him find us."

"It is not up to me. He knows your family has gone missing, and he will not stop until he finds you. If I do not take you to him, someone else will."

"No, Severus, please, you have to help us, you have to help Draco."

"Why would I do that?"

"You took an Oath to protect him, to keep him safe."

"I did just that. I risked my life to save him, Narcissa. I am not bound by that oath any more."

"We have been friends for years; you have known my son his entire life. You cannot let the Dark Lord kill him, Severus, you have to help him. Please."

He remained silent for a few moments, considering his options. He had told Hermione he would try to help Draco, and the boy could prove useful, if he was really willing to work for the light, but he knew he could not be sure the boy would not simply change his mind and betray them all in the end. Now with Narcissa, things would be different. It was true, he had known Draco for years, and knew how the boy had been raised. He cared about his family above all, and would do anything to protect them. Severus also knew he cared even more deeply for his mother, and no matter what Lucius told the boy, he would still do just about anything to protect her. He tilted his head to the side and carefully watched Narcissa; his silence was making her nervous and he knew it.

"If I told you I would try to help Draco, would you be willing to help me?" he asked, slowly.

"You would protect him?"

"I would try."

"I will do anything to save my son, Severus; you know that."

"Even if it meant betraying the Dark Lord?" he asked, and watched her eyes widen in surprise and fear.

"Yes," she finally whispered.

"I will talk with your son, and then make my decision. You will wait here until I return," he said, and she nodded.

"Thank you, Severus," she said, as he turned around and headed for the door.

"Do not thank me yet," he replied, before stepping outside and closing the door.

He took a few minutes to set new wards around the room, just in case, and then made his way back up the stairs. A part of him had been hoping he would find Lucius in the house as well, but Draco had taken him somewhere else.

As he reached the dark room he saw Draco's figure still sitting on the chair, exactly were he had left him and apparently still unconscious. He stepped inside and closed that door as well, setting a few wards just in case someone else tried to enter, although he was sure it was only the three of them in the house, and doubted anyone else knew where they were. One could never be too careful.

He walked around the chair and stood in front of the boy, raising his wand and making sure he was still properly bound before muttering, "Rennervate," and watching his eyes fluttering open.

"What happened?" Draco asked, looking around frantically as he struggled to free himself. "Who are you?"

With an exasperated sigh, Severus waved his wand, lighting the room so that Draco would see him.

"Snape? What's going on?" Draco asked, as soon as his eyes settled on him. "How did you get here? Where is Hermione?"

"Miss Granger," he said, as his free hand reached inside his pocket, "gave me this." He saw Draco's eyes widen when he showed him the Galleon Hermione had turned into a Portkey.

"Why would she do that?" he asked, clearly not believing Snape's words.

"Because I told her I needed to speak to you. You see, she seems to trust me," he replied, with a smirk.

"She should know better," Draco muttered under his breath, and then yelled in pain when he was hit by a minor curse.

"Watch your tongue, Mr Malfoy. You have found yourself in this kind of situation before; one would think you would have learned how to behave by now."

"What do you want?" he spat angrily.

"I want to know whose side you are really on; I want to know if you can be trusted."

"I think I have already proven myself. I could have let her die in that cabin, but I didn't."

"And I am still wondering why you did that," Severus said calmly, as he paced in front of him.

"I saved her, and I saved you as well," Draco said then, trying to sound confident. "After she was dead, you know my father would have killed you."

"Yet you helped Lucius escape."

"He is my father; I couldn't let the Aurors find him."

"By saving her, you have condemned your family, you know that."

"I can still protect them."

"Do you know why I am here, Draco?" Severus asked with a smirk, towering over the boy.

"You want me to tell you where my father is?" he asked, making Severus laugh.

"I don't think so; the Dark Lord sent me here," he said, and smirked again when he saw the boy's eyes widen in fear.

"No, that's not possible," he said, nervously. "Hermione would never have given you the Galleon if…"

"What makes you think she would do anything to protect you?" Severus interrupted.

"She knows the truth; she knows I care about her, that I wouldn't lie to her."

"You care about her?" he almost snorted. "You hated her for years, and now suddenly, after barely a few weeks, you care about her?"

"How long did it take you?" Draco asked, with a knowing glint in his eyes.

"What?" Severus said, confused.

"How long did it take you to fall for her? Months? Weeks? Days?"

"I have no idea what you are talking about, Malfoy."

"You can deny it all you want, but one fool can recognize another," Draco said, with a shrug.

"You are delusional."

"I have known you all my life, Severus, and never have I seen you look at someone the way you looked at her that night. You might not want to admit it to yourself, but I know the truth, and I know the way she affects one's life."

"You know absolutely nothing," he replied, angrily. "You have been surrounded by cold, proper purebloods all your life; now someone shows you kindness, and you think you care about her? You are right, Draco; you are a fool."

"And you came all this way to tell me that?"

"No. I came all this way because the Dark Lord asked me to find you and your family," he said, smirking when he saw the fear return to Draco's face.

"Why?" he asked, his voice just a whisper.

"You do not know? Suddenly, your entire family goes missing; did you think he would not notice?"

"It is your fault, you killed my aunt. Why is he looking for us?"

"You cannot run away, and you cannot hide. Once you become one of his Death Eaters, there is no way out. It is loyalty or death."

"You are not loyal to him, you are a traitor."

"I have paid the price, I still do."

"If you came here to take us to him, then what are you waiting for? Or are you afraid the Order will find out, and that Hermione will know?"

"I never said I came to take you there, all I said is that he sent me after you."

"Then what do you want?" Draco asked.

"I want to know if you are still loyal to the Dark Lord," Severus said, calmly.

"One would have thought my running away with my family would be answer enough."

"That only proves you are a coward; that is not what I came here to hear."

"Looking after those I love does not make me a coward. Some of us care about more people than just ourselves."

"If you truly cared for them, you would have done what your aunt asked you to, and you never would have stopped Lucius when he tried to do it himself."

"Then Hermione would be dead, how would that be better?"

"Your beloved family would be safe, is that not what you want?"

"I want her safe as well."

Severus watched him silently, thinking exactly what he should say.

"Miss Granger asked you to retrieve something for her."

"How do you know?"

"How do you think I know, boy? She told me, she showed it to me. Do you have any idea what it was you gave her? How important that is to the Dark Lord?"

"It is just a cup," he said with a shrug, although Severus could tell the boy knew it was much more than that, although he probably did not know the details.

"When the Dark Lord finds out it is missing… you will face his rage for the first time, and probably the last too."

"He will not know it was me that took it."

"I happen to know it was heavily guarded."

"I took care of that," Draco said, dismissively.

"You took care of the Inferi?" Severus asked, and he nodded. "There were Death Eaters guarding it too."

"Not any more."

"Are you certain you left no witnesses and that no one else knows you were there?"

"No one."

"Not even your aunt knew?"

"I said no one."

"It might take longer then, but he will still know."

"He might be dead before then," Draco said, surprising Severus.

"What are you talking about?"

"I know that cup will help Potter kill him."

"So you knowingly helped his enemy. Would you willingly take more part, actively fight for his demise?"

"Do I have any choice? If I said no, then you would kill me. That is why you really are here, isn't it? To make sure your secret is still safe."

"Do not fool yourself, Draco. The only reason why I am here and you are still alive is that Miss Granger seems to believe you could help the Order."

"She is not the only one. That Auror, Shacklebolt, is it, seems to believe I could be helpful as well."

"You have talked to him?" Severus asked, trying to hide his surprise.

"Hermione sent him here, a few hours ago. I thought you knew everything that happened in the Order, Severus," he taunted.

"How much did you tell him?" he asked menacingly, stepping closer to Draco.

"I only confirmed what you had told them about the other night. He told me he could keep my mother safe if I agreed to help them."

"Is that what he said?" he asked then.

"Yes. He said he can send her away, somewhere safe. All I have to do is tell him what I know."

"He cannot keep her safe. He has no idea what he is dealing with. If the Dark Lord wants to find her, there is no place the Order or the Ministry can provide that will keep her alive; he will find her, and sooner than you might think."

"And you can help?"

"You know I can."

"So we finally get to the point, I believe. What would it take for you to help protect my family?"

"Not much, just your cooperation."

"I am sure there is much more to it than the apparent. What, exactly, would be the terms of this agreement?"

"You will do what I tell you to do, when I say so. No questions."

"Is there a chance I might come out of it alive?"

"Is there a chance for any of us?" he asked, then stepped back and waved his wand once, releasing Draco. "But you do not have a choice."

"Why are you really doing this?" Draco asked, as he rubbed his sore wrists.

"You might want to say goodbye to your mother," Severus said, ignoring his question.

"Where will you take her?"

"If I told you, it would not be a secret," he said, with a smirk.

"What about my father?"

"What about him?"

"Will you help him too?"

"You can keep him where he is; I will not go looking for him, for now. That is all the help he will get. If he tries something, or even runs into me somewhere, sometime, I will kill him, like I should have long ago."

"What about…"

"Enough," Severus said, annoyed by all the questions. "Follow me," he ordered, as he unwarded the door and stepped outside, making his way down the stairs and towards the room where he had left Narcissa.

"Make sure to tell her to behave," Severus said, as he lifted the wards he had set on the door.

"Mother!" Draco yelled, as soon as Severus opened the door, and ran towards Narcissa, taking in her dishevelled hair and split lip, as well as the small bruise on her forehead. "Are you all right? What have you done to her?" he asked, turning to Severus.

"I am fine, Draco, it is nothing," she assured him.

"We will be leaving in a few minutes, Narcissa," Severus told her calmly. "Draco will remain here until I return. You might want to say goodbye to him."

"Why? Why can't he come with me?"

"It is all right, mother; I will be fine. Severus will take you somewhere safe."

"No, please, Severus," she said, stepping closer to him. "Let him come with me. I need to know he is safe."

"There is no time for this, we have to leave," he said, coldly. "Say goodbye to your son if you like, but do it now."

He took a few steps back, not needing to hear all the emotional babble, and after a few moments cleared his throat loudly, interrupting them.

"Wait outside," he said, turning to Draco, who hesitated for a moment, but then nodded and walked outside.

"You said you would help him, Severus," Narcissa said, as soon as the door was closed. "You said you would keep him safe."

"I never said such thing. Still, as long as he does what I need him to do; I will protect him as much as possible."

"Would you help him, see he comes to no harm?"

"I will try."

"Will you swear? Will you make the Unbreakable Vow?"

"No more vows, Narcissa. You will have to take my word for it this time," he said, and before she could say anything else, he took her arm, turned one of the fallen books in the room into a Portkey and took her away.

It did not take as long as he had expected to leave her there. After a few explanations, reminding her she had to stay inside, and refusing to return her wand, he took the Portkey again and returned to the house where Draco was waiting.

"I want to know where she is," Draco said, as soon as Severus stepped out of the room. "I want to know she really is safe."

"I am quickly tiring of this," Severus said, walking past him, into the main hall. "You are not essential for my plans, Mr Malfoy. Do not test my patience, or you might find yourself wishing the Dark Lord had found you, instead of me."

"How do I know she is all right then?"

"I am afraid you will have to trust me. Why would I harm her, if she is much more useful alive?"

"I want someone else to know where she is. If not me, then I want you to tell Hermione. That way I will know she is all right."

"You leave her out of this," Severus said angrily, turning to face Draco again.

"Are you afraid she will know what you are up to?"

"I am up to nothing, and you will stay away from Miss Granger from now on."

"Why do you still call her Miss Granger? She has a beautiful name; you should use it more often."

He knew Draco was taunting him, trying to make him say things he did not want to. Why was the boy so obsessed with her?

"I believe I already warned you once before. Do not test my patience, Draco."

"But it is so amusing, the way you try to hide it. I can see the change in your expression whenever I mention her name. You told me once I was not good for her; what makes you think you are?"

"I never said I was; all I said was that you should leave her alone, that you should stay away from her."

"Why won't you simply accept the truth? Why do you keep denying?"

"I don't. I do not care about her. She helped me when I needed it, and now I will repay the favour by keeping you away. It is as simple as that."

"If you say so… You know, I am actually glad you clearly don't care for her; that will make things much easier for me. It took me years to really see her, now I will not stop until I have her. You might not think I am good enough, but you are wrong, and I will prove it."

"You will not do such thing," Severus said, angrily. "You will leave her alone, or I will make you. You will do nothing but ruin…" he started, but the searing pain in his forearm interrupted him.

"He is calling you," Draco said, and he did not even bother to reply.

"Where are we?" Severus asked, looking around the house. "I cannot take a Portkey with me; I need to know where this place is."

"Plymouth. It is a manor that belonged to my mother's family."

"Very well. You will wait here until I return," he said, as he walked to the door.

"Severus, wait."

"What?" he asked, opening the door.

"I need my wand," Draco replied.

He hesitated for a moment, and then finally reached inside his robes and took out both Draco and Narcissa's wands and gave them to the boy. If someone found the wands with him, he would be in trouble.

He finally stepped outside of the house, took a few moments to examine it, knowing the mental image would help him return, and then Apparated to headquarters, still not sure exactly what he would tell his Master.

"Severus," a voice said, as soon as he stepped inside.

"What is it, Wormtail?" he asked with an angry sigh. He hated talking to the wizard.

"The Dark Lord wants to speak to you."

"Of course he does, why else would he have called me?" he asked, irritably. "Where is he?"

"He is waiting for you in his study."

"Very well," Severus said, as he started walking that way.

"Oh, Severus," the wizard said just as he was leaving.

"What?" he spat angrily, turning around for a moment.

"He is in a rather foul mood, you might want to be careful," Wormtail told him with an evil smirk that made him resemble a rat even more.

He saw a few more Death Eaters on his way, most of them talking in low voices. He was tempted to step closer and find out what they were discussing, but making the Dark Lord wait would not be wise.

He finally reached the door to the study, knocked once, and then waited for the Dark Lord's response to open and enter. As soon as he stepped inside, he saw Voldemort sitting by the fire, aiming his wand at him, and then felt something around his throat, as if two strong hands were strangling him. He fell on his knees, gasping for breath. His hands flew to his throat, but there was nothing there. He began to feel the room around him faint, and just when he felt he had no strength left, the curse was lifted.

"What took you so long?" Voldemort asked angrily, standing up and walking closer to him. "I told you I wanted answers fast."

"I am sorry, My Lord," Severus replied, his voice hoarse. "But it was not easy. They were keeping what happened secret, only a few knew about it, and were not very eager to cooperate."

"I do not care what happened, or how you do your job. I want results, and I want them fast. Where is Bellatrix?"

Severus could see the anger in his eyes, and knew he could not tell him she was dead; if he knew, Voldemort would probably kill him, simply out of anger, so he took the only other option that seemed possible.

"She is a prisoner, the Order found her."

He covered his head when part of the wall behind him blew up, and then slowly stood up. If Voldemort tried to kill him, he would fight back.

"Where is she?" he asked Severus, visibly trying to calm down.

"I do not know yet, Master, but…" he started, but was interrupted as another curse hit him.

"No excuses, Severus. I want answers."

"They are keeping the prisoners hidden using a Fidelius charm. I do not know who the Secret Keeper is, but I will find out, My Lord." The lies were leaving his lips before he could even think what he was saying, and he knew he would have to find a way to cover after them as soon as he left headquarters; still, those lies would give him time.

"And the others that were with her?"

"Apparently, there is an informant, Sir, someone working with the Order. They knew you had sent some Death Eaters on a mission, and attacked them. The two men you had sent her with were killed."

"What about the Malfoys?"

"I am not sure what happened or how, but I was told the three of them Apparated there a few moments after the attack. Perhaps Bellatrix called them."

"The three of them?"

"Yes, Master; Lucius, Narcissa and Draco. I did not know Lucius was back until they told me."

"What happened to them?"

"They said Lucius was badly wounded, and his son Apparated him away. Narcissa was killed."

"Do you know where they are kee..." he started, but was interrupted by a knock on the door.

"What?" Voldemort yelled, waving his wand and throwing the door open. A masked Death Eater was standing outside, moving from one foot to the other, and looking slightly nervous. "What is it, Rabastan? What are you doing here?"

"Master, if I may," the wizard replied, as he stepped inside the room and closed the door behind him.

"Speak," Voldemort spat, angrily.

"I just came back from the Monastery, Master."

"I know where you came back from; I am the one that sent you there. Why are you here? Where are the other guards?"

"We got there to relieve them, as you ordered, but when we arrived there they were dead, Master."

"What? What happened?"

"Someone broke in."

"Who?"

"I do not know. Whoever it was, they got back out alive."

"What about the Inferi?"

"Most of them had been petrified or bound together. Some had been slain as well."

"That is not possible; not those Inferi. What else did you see?"

"Not much, Master, there was…"

"Legilimens," he interrupted exasperated, his wand so close to Rabastan that it was almost touching his forehead. Severus watched them, saw Voldemort's features contort with rage, his eyes glow crimson, and then the spell was lifted, and with an angry roar he waved his wand again and open the door, sending Rabastan flying out of the room.

"Do you know anything about this?" he asked a moment later, turning to Severus.

So, they had found out the cup was missing, and it was only a matter of time before Voldemort discovered it had been Draco.

"No, My Lord."

"Only those with my mark can enter the monastery; you were right, Severus, there is a traitor among us, and you will find out who it is and bring them to me."

"Yes, Master," he said, bowing.

"Find Lucius and his son as well, I want to know what happened."

"Of course," he said, but Voldemort was not listening. He was pacing the room, muttering to himself, his voice so low Severus could not make out the words.

Thinking it was probably the best time to leave, he turned around and took a few steps towards the door, but Voldemort's voice stopped him.

"Severus."

"Yes, My Lord?"

"Close the door," he said, still pacing the room, looking as if he were trying to decide something. As soon as the door was closed, Voldemort stopped walking and looked at him. "I have another mission for you."

"What can I do for you, Master?" he asked, calmly.

"I cannot leave the country at the moment, I have a few matters to take care of, so I will need you to go somewhere and make sure everything is as it should be," he said, cryptically. "You will do that, and then report back immediately."

"Yes, Master. What is it that you need me to check?"

"You do not need to know that. You will take this," Voldemort said, flicking his wand over a small sculpture lying broken on the floor and muttering, "Portus."

"Where…"

"Do not interrupt me," he said, angrily. "As soon as you get there, you will go east, approximately five miles, and then turn south. You will be able to feel the magic from there; follow it. It will not be long before you find the source, but you will not be able to see it. You will have to slice your forearm, where the Dark Mark is, and use that blood to find the entrance. That is the only safe way in. Hidden behind one of the stone walls is a niche, and inside it you will find an object. Simply make sure it is still there and return."

"Yes, Master," he said, bowing.

"Oh, and Severus, do not touch anything, if you value your life in the least. You are the only one I would trust to do this; do not disappoint me. Go now," Voldemort said, waving his wand and sending the Portkey flying into Severus' hand.

He barely had time to react before the Portkey was activated, and soon he found himself in the middle of a forest, just as Voldemort had said. A quick glance towards the sky told him the sun would rise in barely an hour; he would have to move fast.

He followed Voldemort's instructions, and soon found the trail of magic he had been searching for. After over half an hour climbing the mountainside, he finally stood in front of the source and, as he had been instructed, sliced his forearm open and let the blood fall to the ground.

He felt the earth under his feet shake, and then a few rays of green light were shot up from the spot where his blood had fallen, blinding him. He closed his eyes for a moment, and when he opened them again he saw the light was gone, and he was standing in front of an ornate stone door.

Severus hesitantly touched the door, and then tried to push it open, but it was too heavy. He was about to reach for his wand when he felt the Dark Mark burn, and the door slowly slide open.

He stepped inside a large circular room, the stone walls barely lit by a few torches that glowed green. In the middle of the room were at least twenty figures standing still, looking almost exactly like the Xian Terracotta Warriors, only this were corpses. The Dark Lord certainly loved Inferi.

He moved closer to the wall and watched it carefully for a few moments, not sure what to do to find the hidden niche. He tried a revealing spell first, but nothing happened. He would have tried a simple summoning charm, but he was not sure what was hidden behind the wall, so it would not work. After going over the charms and spells he knew, he remembered one that could work. It was ancient magic, rarely used any more, since there were easier spells that usually had the same effect. He hoped Voldemort had not thought of that it casting the wards and protections.

The spell had been created to discover concealment of any kind, and when Severus cast it, the golden light that shot from his wand slowly moved around the room, barely inches from the wall, until it suddenly stopped a few feet to his left, glowed brighter, and then vanished.

Just as Severus started walking to the spot the spell had signalled, the stone door slid closed again, leaving the room even darker than before. Focusing on the hidden niche, he tried a few spells before he found the right one, and the false wall disappeared.

He gasped in surprise when he saw what was inside it; Rowena Ravenclaw's diadem, one of the remaining Horcruxes. When the Dark Lord had found out the cup was missing and had sent him on a mission, he had hoped it would be that, but a part of him refused to believe it would be that easy, that Voldemort would unknowingly hand the enemy one of his soul pieces like that. He had been wrong.

He examined the niche for a moment, and then turned around and watched the Inferi. They were standing still, but he was sure they would attack as soon as he touched the diadem. Knowing what would happen gave him an advantage, although a small one, and keeping his back to the wall, he reached into the niche and took the diadem, tugging it away just as the decrepit figures started moving.

They were just a few feet away, and that did not give him much time to react, but Rabastan's words from earlier gave him an idea. With a few muttered words, fire erupted from his wand, blinding the Inferi long enough for him to attack. He started with the ones closest to him, petrifying them and watching them fall to the ground. He ran around the room, his back close to the wall, and used a few binding spells to stop the others. There were only four still standing, and Severus fired a few curses their way, slicing their flesh until they were no longer able to attack him. If Voldemort went there, or sent someone, it would look like the same person that had taken the cup had been in there as well.

He made his way to the door, reaching for his wand to open it again, when he felt cold fingers wrap around his leg and yank him back, making him fall and drop his wand. He turned around to see the Inferi he had bound together reach for him as one, broken nails sinking into his flesh as they tried to pull him to them. Kicking at them with all his strength, he tried to reach for his wand, but the corpses were pulling him further away with every second that passed.

Turning to face them, he tried using his hands to force them to let go, but they did not seem to feel any pain. They kept pulling him closer, and he felt their hands reaching his knees, sharp nails cutting into his thighs now. Knowing he did not have much time left, he turned back around and tried summoning his wand, but his wandless magic did not seem to work in there.

He looked around the room, trying to find something that might help him, and saw a severed arm from one of the other Inferi lying close to him. Without stopping to think, he grasped the arm and turned back towards the wand. He stretched as much as he could and used the clawed hand to pull the wand closer to him. Just as he felt the nails reaching his back, he wrapped his fingers around his wand, and fire erupted from it once more. He felt the hands almost instantly let go of him, as the Inferi tried to cover their eyes, and he took the chance to get away from them.

Panting slightly, he touched the door and felt the Dark Mark burn again, as the door slid open. He stepped outside and blinked rapidly, his eyes trying to adjust to the almost orange light from the sunrise. He looked back when he heard the door moving again, and after a few seconds it glowed green once more and disappeared.

He took a moment to catch his breath, quickly healed his wounds and clothes, and then reached inside his robes and pulled the diadem out. He had to go back to headquarters, and when he told his Master the Horcrux was gone, he was not sure what would happen. If Voldemort killed him, he had to make sure the Horcrux would be destroyed.

Deciding there was only one person he could trust with it, he put the diadem back away and Apparated to the Order's headquarters.


	48. cursed

Not entirely sure as to why, she had finally decided to give Severus the golden Galleon. She could see a hint of hatred in his eyes every time he spoke of Draco, but she knew he was the only one that could help him. Even after what had happened between them, she knew she could trust Severus, and it was out of that trust that she had activated the Portkey and sent him to Draco.

She stared at the spot where he had been standing seconds before for a few moments, hoping she had made the right decision. Even now that she knew everything Draco had told her had been a lie, that he had been sent to her, ordered to spy on her and kill her, she could not bring herself to hate him; he had helped her, he had saved her life and that of her friends. She had done as much as she could for him now; had asked Kingsley to protect him, and now Severus as well. She only hoped it would be enough.

After a few moments, her thoughts left Draco and turned to Severus. They had not had a civil conversation in a long time, and it had felt good. She had been surprised by what he had said made him turn to Voldemort at first; the power, the ideas. Still, what had surprised her most had been the honesty in his answer. It felt as if, for only a moment, he had let his guard down

Although she had been getting ready for dinner when he had arrived, she did not feel hungry anymore; still, it would be best if she joined the others downstairs, even if only for some tea. Harry and Ron had been nagging her with questions for days, and she knew it would get worse if she stayed in her room; they probably knew about Severus barging into her room already.

Remembering she was still only in her underwear, she took off the robe and put some jeans on, then reached for a top and a pair of shoes. Only when she tried to open the door did she remember Severus had locked it; he had run inside the room, and she had heard voices out there before he had cast a silencing charm. She briefly wondered if whoever had knocked on the door then was still waiting outside.

With a few flicks of her wand the door was unlocked; the wards Severus had used were easy to break from the inside, but almost impossible to get through from outside. She slowly opened the door, not sure what she would find outside.

"Where is he?" Kingsley asked, as soon as he saw her. She was glad the only other person by the door was Molly.

"You had us worried, dear; is everything all right?" Molly asked her, while tilting her head and craning her neck, trying to see inside the room.

"Everything is fine; there is nothing to worry about."

"What happened?" Kingsley asked her.

"Nothing, he just needed to talk to me," she said, throwing him a warning look, hoping he would drop the subject at least until Molly was gone.

"Well, then why don't we all go downstairs and have some dinner? Ginny and the boys are already there waiting."

"Of course," she said, starting down the stairs before Kingsley could say anything.

"Kingsley, are you staying as well?" she heard Molly ask behind her.

"No, I have work to do, but thank you," he said, walking down the stairs and catching up with her as she reached the kitchen door.

"What happened?" he asked her, in a low voice.

"He needed to speak to Draco."

"Why?"

"I am not sure yet."

"Is there anything I should know?"

"No, I don't…" she started, but stopped when Molly walked past them.

"Well, let's go, dear," she said, walking into the kitchen.

"I have to go," she told him, walking after Molly.

"We will talk later," he said, and she nodded. "Good night then."

"Good night."

As expected, everyone in the room seemed to know what had happened, from Severus walking in injured to him running up the stairs and locking them both inside her bedroom. Although she was still not hungry, she decided questions were avoided more easily if she was eating, so she did just that. Molly helped as well, asking the boys to leave her alone, although she could see the way the woman was looking at her, curiosity clear on her face.

As soon as she finished dinner, she excused herself and went back to her bedroom; she was spending an awful lot of time in there lately, but that seemed to keep Harry and Ron away.

She tossed and turned in bed for what must have been hours, the memories of what Severus had told her replaying in her mind. She wondered just how much Voldemort knew about what had happened, about Bellatrix's death, about Severus' true alliances. When Ginny walked in the room she pretended to be asleep, ignoring the other girl when she whispered her name, asking if she was awake, and after a few more moments of lying still sleep finally took her.

She heard the door to her room creak open and turned around in bed, covering her eyes from the light that came from the hallway, thinking it was just Ginny walking in, but then she remembered Ginny had gone to bed earlier; she could even hear her calm breathing to her side.

Suddenly awake and alert, she sat up in bed, turning to the door, but although she could see a figure standing on the doorway, she could not tell who it was. That is until he spoke.

"Miss Granger," Severus said in a low, barely audible voice.

"What are you doing here?" she asked, in the same hushed voice, turning to look at Ginny on the other bed to make sure she was still asleep. Memories of the night he had snuck into her bedroom came to her mind, but she quickly pushed them away; the last thing she needed was images of that heated, passionate encounter.

"I need to give you something; there is not much time."

She could hear the urgency in his voice, even if she could not see the expression on his face, and she knew it must be something serious for him to go see her in the middle of the night.

"What is it?"

"Not here," he replied curtly, his face tilting to Ginny's bed for a second. "Downstairs," he said, before turning around and walking away.

She quickly got out of bed, reached for her robes and wrapped them around her body as she moved down the stairs. He was waiting for her in the library.

"I need you to keep something safe. It cannot be found in my possession," he said, as soon as she stepped into the room.

"Of course," she replied, and waited for him to explain himself.

"Do you still have that cup you showed me in your possession?"

"Yes," she said, not sure where the conversation was going.

"Has it been destroyed yet?"

"No, not yet; basilisk venom is not easy to find."

"There are other ways," he replied, reaching inside his robes. "I need you to take this," he said, retrieving a rather small, shiny object from his pocket and holding it in his hand for a few moments before placing it on the table. "I am sure you know what it is," he said.

She took a step closer, her eyes narrowed as she tried to see it better in the almost completely dark room. Seconds later she gasped in recognition.

"Is that… is it…?" she started, unable to finish the question as she stepped closer still, amazement and surprise evident on her face as she watched the beautiful diadem.

"Yes," he simply replied.

"Where…how did you find it?" she asked, turning to him and only then noticing his torn clothes, and his bleeding legs. "What happened to you?"

"None of that matters. I have to go back to the Dark Lord soon, and I do not know if I will be able to return. I need to know it will be destroyed."

"What do you mean by not being able to return? Will he send you on another mission?" she asked, noting something strange in his voice, in the way he had spoken.

"He sent me to make sure the diadem was safe; now I have to go back and tell him it had been taken before I arrived there. He will not be pleased," he said, and although he did not sound worried, she knew there was much he was not telling her. He might not return; those words kept echoing in her ears, as if she were trying to find a hidden meaning to the short phrase. "Can you make sure it is destroyed?"

"Of course," she replied quickly, looking at the beautiful object again, amazed that something so beautiful could contain something so awful.

"Good, then…" he trailed off, and she turned to him just in time to see him stumble slightly.

"Are you sure you are all right?" she asked, slightly worried. She could see, even in the dim light, that he looked paler than usual.

"Yes," he replied, and her attention soon went back to the diadem.

It really was beautiful, and it seemed to capture all the light in the room, shining more than anyone would think possible. She slowly, tentatively, reached out to touch her, but just as her fingers were about to make contact she heard Snape gasp loudly.

"Hermione, no; don't touch it," he yelled at her, instantly halting her motions.

She turned around to face him, a slight frown on her face that morphed into a worried look as soon as she saw him standing incredibly still, eyes wide as he held his hand in front of him, the tips of his fingers slowly turning black. She stepped closer to him, not sure what to do, and watched him stumble backwards and then fall, as if in slow motion, hitting the side of the table and knocking the chair over before reaching the floor.

"Severus," she screamed, as she ran to him. She took his hand in hers, and saw now the fingers had turned completely black, and his hand was beginning to darken as well. "What is it? Was there a curse? Poison? What can I do?"

She watched him gasp for breath, trying to speak, but his voice was weak and she had to lean closer to hear him.

"Bezoar. Pocket," he breathed, and she quickly let go of his hand to search his robes, trying to find the stone.

She instantly reached for her wand and tried summoning the bezoar; his robes seemed to vibrate for a moment as she spoke the words, but nothing else happened. There probably was some kind of spell preventing things from simply being summoned away. She knew she would have to search the robes herself, but her hands were shaking so badly she had trouble reaching inside his pockets, and for some reason his robes seemed to be made of those.

After a few moments he started coughing, his body shaking as if convulsing, and his now entirely black eyes rolled to the back of his head. She wanted to cry out in fear and desperation, but she knew there was no time for nonsense; she had to do something fast. She was not sure how many pockets she had searched so far, but suddenly her fingers reached something solid, and as she pulled it out she sighed, relieved to have finally found the stone.

She kneeled by his head, slipping her hands under his neck to lift him up just enough so he could take the bezoar and not choke. She rested his head on her lap, and moved her hands to his face, gently trying to push his mouth open, but to no avail. He had his jaw clenched, probably in pain, and she could not force it open. The thought of simply using magic crossed her mind, but she would not risk doing that; she had no idea how a spell would react to whatever was affecting him.

"Severus," she whispered, trying to calm him down, hoping he could hear her. She did not know what else to do. "Severus, can you hear me?" she asked, caressing his face, and saw his eyes flutter open for a second before closing again. "Open your mouth," she whispered close to his ear. "You have to open your mouth so I can give you the bezoar."

She saw his jaw move slightly, and then heard him groan in pain.

"It is okay," she said, soothingly. "It will just be a second. Just take the bezoar please," she whispered, tears welling in her eyes as she watched his body still shake, his face contorted in pain. "Severus, please," she repeated, and smiled slightly when after a few more moments he parted his lips, emitting another pained groan as he did, but taking the bezoar she gave him.

He kept shaking for a few more seconds, and then his entire body went completely limp. She looked at him panicked for a moment. From what she had read about bezoars so many years before, their effect was immediate. Something had gone wrong.

"Severus," she said, shaking him slightly, trying to wake him up, but received no response at all. She looked back at his hand; it was completely black now. Lifting his arm, she rolled up the sleeve and saw the curse was still working, although it seemed to be doing it at a slower pace now.

Still, she knew there was not much time, and she had no idea what to do. All she knew was that apparently the curse had been on the diadem, but she had neither the time nor the knowledge necessary to find out exactly what curse it was.

She needed help, but from whom? The only ones in the house that night were Harry and the Weasleys, and she could not see how they would be of assistance. She could not take Severus to see a healer, and the only one she knew was the Hogwarts matron, and although the witch had been summoned to headquarters when she had been stabbed by Malfoy, she had no idea if she would be able to help him now.

Unable to think clearly, she let her instincts guide her, and called the one person she trusted and thought could help. She reached for her wand and conjured a Patronus, sending it away with a message, just like she had learnt to do only days before. After what felt like hours but had probably only been minutes, the flames glowed green, and a tall figure stepped out of the fireplace.

"What happened?" Kingsley asked alarmed, his deep voice slightly tainted by a hint of sleep.

"Kingsley," she called, not even turning around to watch him.

"What it is, what's happened?" he asked worriedly, as he walked closer to her.

"I don't know what to do, I can not wake him up," she said, feeling all the calmness leave her now that there was someone else there to take charge.

"What's happened to him?" Kingsley asked, kneeling in front of her, on the other side of Severus' head.

"I think it is a curse. He said not to touch it, and then I turned around and he fell to the floor. I did not know what to do," she said, trying to keep her voice from breaking.

"Calm down, Hermione. I need you to tell me exactly what happened if you want me to help him."

"His fingers turned black first," she said, reaching for his hand to show him. "Then the rest of his hand. Now his entire arm is turning," she continued, rolling up his sleeve again. "He told me to give him a bezoar and I did, but then he went limp," she explained.

"You gave him a bezoar and then he went limp?" Kingsley asked, and she nodded. "How long ago was that?"

"I don't…I'm not sure. I couldn't find the stone, and then he wouldn't open his mouth. But I called you when he went limp, I didn't know what else to do," she said, feeling like she was about to break down. She had to help him, she had to save him. "Please, Severus, wake up," she whispered, gently taking his head in her hands, oblivious to Kingsley's surprised eyes. Her hands were almost shaking as she held him and she couldn't remember being so nervous, so scared for someone; not even when she had found him bleeding to death in his house so long ago.

"Hermione," she heard Kingsley call, his voice barely audible. "Hermione."

"What?" she asked, lifting her eyes to his for a moment.

"I asked you if you knew what he touched?" he repeated, and when he saw her confused expression he added, "You said he told you not to touch something. What was it?"

"The diadem," she answered, absently.

"What diadem?"

"It's there, on the table," she said, pointing at it for a moment before her attention switched back to Severus.

She barely noticed Kingsley get up and walk to the table, but the flashes of light coming from behind her made her turn around.

"What are you doing?" she asked him.

"I am trying to figure out what curse they used."

"Bill," she gasped, earning herself a confused look.

"What?"

"He is a curse breaker. Maybe he can help."

"He is away on a mission with Charlie, you know that. There is no way to contact them," he replied, his attention back to the diadem as he kept trying different spells and charms, apparently not getting the result he was hoping for. "There are many curses set," he told her after a few more minutes. "As well as some poison. I can stop some of the curses, but I do not know all of them. The bezoar has slowed the effect, but it will not stop it or give us much time."

"Maybe he knows," she muttered.

"Who?"

"Severus. Maybe he knows the other curses. Can you wake him up?"

"I could try, but I do not know how that will affect the other curses. It might make them start to work faster."

"Is there another option?"

"We cannot take him to a healer, and I doubt many would know what to do with him."

"Then I think you should wake him up," she told him, firmly.

He looked at her for a few moments, considering, and then nodded and walked back to where they were, kneeling by his head once more.

"I need you to hold him still. If he wakes up before I am done then I will need him to be still," he said, and she nodded, moving her arms to his shoulders. "Ready?" he asked, and she simply nodded again. She could feel her heart hammering in her chest as she wondered if she had made the right decision or she had sentenced him to death.

The tip of Kingsley's wand glowed blue against Severus' chest, and she heard him mutter a few words she couldn't understand, but nothing happened. Then Kingsley moved the wand to his forehead, and it glowed white. She felt Severus shiver slightly, but he still did not wake up. She was getting more and more nervous by the minute.

Kingsley took Severus' blackened arm and rolled up his sleeve. The entire arm was completely black by then, so the Auror's hands move to his chest, hurriedly undoing the cloak and then the shirt, pulling it open and baring his shoulder and part of his chest. The curse had already reached there. She watched silently as Kingsley placed the tip of his wand to the line that divided the parts the curse had blackened and his unmarred skin.

"Hold him," he said, looking at her for a moment before turning back to Severus and whispering a few words.

The wand glowed bright red, and Severus arched from the floor, screaming in pain. Blood dribbled from the place the wand had touched, although there was no visible wound on his skin.

"Hold him still," Kingsley yelled at her, as he slowly started moving the wand along the line, but Severus was too strong, and she could not stop him from moving.

"What's going on here?" an alarmed voice called from the door, and she turned around to see Harry standing there, still in his night clothes, his wand held firmly in front of him.

"Potter, help her. Keep him still," Kingsley barked, before going back to muttering in a low voice.

"Harry, please," she said, still trying to halt Severus' motions.

It took Harry a moment to react, but then he ran to her side and threw his wand to the floor, both hands joining hers on Severus' shoulders. The both of them together could keep him calm enough for Kingsley to finish, leaving Severus' shoulder and chest covered in blood.

"That is as much as I can do," he said, his eyes fixed on Severus' shoulder. "It will hold it back, but I do not know for how long."

"Wake him," Hermione said, before hearing voices getting closer. "Damn," she cursed under her breath, taking her wand and twisting around to vanish the diadem before anyone else got there.

"What is going on?" the twins asked from the doorway, and as she turned to them she saw Ron, Ginny and Molly join them there, all looking shocked and with their eyes apparently locked on her and Snape, whose head was still resting on her lap as she absently caressed his cheek.

"It is nothing," Kingsley said, hurriedly walking to them. "Please just stay outside for now," he told them firmly, closing the door and walking back to her.

"I am not sure if he will be completely conscious," he said, standing at Severus' feet.

"Just wake him, Kingsley, please," she said, and he nodded.

The flash of light that shot from his wand was white this time, and it hit Severus square on the chest. He arched again, his mouth wide open as he took a deep breath, like a drowning man reaching the surface. He started coughing next, and she lifted his head higher, so that he would not choke.

"Severus?" she asked softly, not caring that Kingsley and Harry were there. "Severus, can you hear me?"

After a few moments, he finally stopped coughing and opened his eyes.

"The diadem, it is cursed," he whispered, his voice low and hoarse.

"I know."

"Did you touch it?" he asked, sounding worried as he tried to turn around to face her.

"No."

"Are you sure? It does not take effect immediately," he pressed.

"Yes, I am sure. But you did touch it, and I do not know how to help you."

"What happened?" he asked, sounding confused.

"You fell to the floor, started convulsing and told me to give you a bezoar."

"I assume it did not work," he said.

"It slowed the curse down, but then you fell limp and I could not wake you up."

"Do you know what curse it was?"

"No, we don't," she said, lifting her eyes to Kingsley for a moment.

"Any other symptoms?" he asked, and she could tell it took great effort for him to speak.

"You hand turned black. It has moved up your arm now, but Kingsley managed to contain it for now."

He tried to lift his arm, and groaned in pain.

"Let me see," he said, hoarsely.

She reached for his arm again and carefully lifted it, but as soon as he moved his shoulder started bleeding again, and the skin around it began to darken once more. She quickly let go of his arm, alarmed, and as groaned in pain again.

"No, let me see it. I need to see it," he insisted weakly, and she lifted the arm again.

"It has reached your shoulder, if it gets much further I doubt there will be much that can be done," Kingsley told him.

"It is not burned," he whispered as he took a closer look. "It should look burned, but it is only blackened."

"What does that mean?" she asked.

"The Mark," he said, almost to himself. "The Mark has protected me from the worst part of the curse."

"So you know what it is then?"

"It is the same curse that almost killed Albus," he said, and groaned as he tried to sit up.

"Be still," she said, pressing her hands against his bleeding shoulder when she saw how pale he was.

"But I thought Albus could not be cured," Kingsley said.

"He could not, but it has not affected me the same way."

"What can I do then, how can I help you?" she asked urgently, when she noticed his breathing slow, and his eyes flutter closed. "Severus," she insisted, when he did not respond. "Severus, wake up. You need to tell me how to help you," she said, caressing his cheek. "Please, open your eyes."

"Potion," he whispered, and started coughing again.

"What potion?" she asked him, realising he would pass out any moment.

"My house. Potions cupboard," he managed to say before another fit of cough hit him.

"What potion do you need? You have to tell me which one."

"Orange," he said, as he gasped for breath. "No label."

"Kingsley, do something," she pleaded desperately, as Severus started shaking in her arms again.

"Can you get the potion he mentioned?"

"Yes."

"Then go. He does not have much time," he said, aiming his wand at Severus, whose body went completely limp once more.

She looked down at him for a moment, at his pale face, his bleeding shoulder, and then she gently but hurriedly moved his head to rest on the floor again and got up on shaky legs.

"How long will it take you?" Kingsley asked, as she started walking to the door.

"Not long, just a few minutes I think."

"Is it safe? Where you are going?" Harry asked her; she had completely forgotten about him. "Do you want me to go with you?"

"No. I will be all right. Just take care of him until I return," she said, as she opened the door and stepped outside the room, not even listening to the confused questions thrown her way by the Weasleys as she walked past them. There was no time.

She hurriedly walked out of headquarters and Apparated to Severus' house. Throwing the door open she ran inside and up the stairs, looking for the room where she had found the potions ingredients that one time.

It was the furthest room down the long hallway, but it did not take her long to reach it. As she walked inside she took a moment to look around and cursed loudly; three of the four walls were covered with cupboards.

Knowing she was alone and not caring how much noise she made, she opened the first cabinet to her right, checking every single bottle and vial for the right potion. A few of them fell as she searched, and she quickly vanished the liquid as soon as it hit the floor, worried it might be something dangerous.

She did not find any orange potion in the cupboards that covered the first wall, and soon she moved to the next one; still no luck. She was beginning to feel desperate.

With slightly shaky hands she moved to the last wall. She was taking too much time, but what else could she do?

Then she saw it. At the very bottom of the top shelf, just out of her reach and so well hidden she would have not seen it if she had not known exactly what she was looking for. Summoning the chair closest to her, she placed it right in front of the cupboard and climbed on top of it, pushing the other vials aside as she reached for the right one. It was so far back she had to get on her tiptoes to reach it, and just as she wrapped her fingers around it the chair bucked, and she started falling back.

Not sure how she managed to do it that fast, she let go of the vial and waved her wand in its direction as it fell, halting it in mid air. She finally hit the floor, hitting her head so hard her vision blurred for a moment, but none of that mattered. Her heart hammered at the thought of what could have happened, at the possibility of losing the potion. That was all she cared about at the moment, and thankfully it was safe.

She slowly got up, still feeling slightly dizzy from the fall, and reached for the vial. She turned around and headed back out of the house, her pace fast but still careful for fear she might trip and fall again.

She held the vial firmly against her chest as she Apparated back to headquarters, opening the door and rushing inside.

"What happened to you?" Kingsley asked as soon as she stepped into the library again. The Weasleys were not there anymore, and she guessed he had asked them to leave.

"Nothing," she muttered confused, as she walked to Severus.

"Hermione, you are bleeding," Harry said.

"What?"

"Your forehead. You are bleeding:"

She touched her forehead with her hand, only then noting the pain. She must have hurt herself when she had fallen, she thought. She could not care less. She kneeled by Severus' head once more, reaching for the vial inside her pocket.

"Is that the potion?" Kingsley asked, and she merely nodded. She moved her hands to his face, trying to open his mouth, but she could not.

"His mouth won't open," she said, turning to Kingsley, and he nodded, aiming his wand at Severus again and waking him up. He took a deep breath, like he had before, and then started coughing.

With her hands on his shoulders she carefully lifted him and rested his head on her lap again.

"Severus," she called, and this time he opened his eyes right away. "I have the potion here. You have to take it," she said. He opened his mouth to speak, but started coughing again.

"Can't you stop that?" she asked Kingsley, her voice almost pleading, but he shook his head no. "Severus," she said then, turning back to him. "The potion. How much do you need to take?"

He coughed a few more times, and then she heard something that sounded like 'half'.

"Half?" she said, leaning closer. "Half the vial?" she asked, and he nodded. "All right," she muttered, uncorking the vial. "Are you ready?" she whispered, and she nodded again.

Very carefully, she moved the vial to his lips and tilted it, making sure the liquid would not choke him and giving him time to swallow. It took a few minutes, but he finally drank half the contents down; the effect was almost immediate.

His eyes, that had turned completely black, recovered their previous colour, and his shoulder stopped bleeding. He coughed a few more times, and then his breathing went back to normal. After barely a minute he suddenly sat up and looked down at his arm, frowning slightly.

"Why is it still black?" she asked him, following his gaze.

"It was a very powerful curse; it might take a few hours for the potion to break it completely," he said, his voice now back to normal.

"Will you be all right, then?" she asked.

"Yes. I appreciate what you have done for me, Miss Granger," he told her.

"It was nothing, Professor," she muttered in return, looking away from him as she got up. He looked at her for a second, amusement clear in his eyes, and then he too got up.

"I would like to speak to Miss Granger alone," he said, as he slowly walked to a chair and sat down.

"I am sure whatever you want to say to her, you can tell her with us present," Kingsley quickly replied.

"It is okay, he is right. It will be just a few moments," she said to Kingsley before Severus could reply.

"Hermione, I don't think…"

"It is all right, Harry; really. Just give us a few minutes, will you?" she asked, turning to her old friend.

"Are you sure?"

"Yes," she replied reassuringly, and Harry nodded. He got up and walked to the door, opening it and waiting for Kingsley to walk out before following suit. "I will be right here if you need me," he said, and she nodded. He took a moment to look at Severus, a strange expression on his face, and then closed the door behind him.


	49. Fiendfyre

Hermione waited in silence, not even moving until Harry was gone and the door closed, and then she slowly turned back to Severus.

"What did you want to talk about?"

"Where is the diadem?" Severus asked her, in a low voice.

"With the cup; it is safe."

"Did anyone else see it?"

"Only Kingsley, I believe. He needed it to try to discover what curses you were suffering from."

"So you just showed it to him?"

"You were lying on the floor dying; what did you expect me to do?" she asked, angrily.

"Raising your voice will solve nothing," he said calmly, making her even angrier than before.

"You know, one would think you would be the least bit grateful we saved your life."

"I have saved your life many times, and never asked for any gratitude; I do not see how this is any different, but still, I am grateful for your help. Now can we move on to what matters?"

"I don't even know why I'm surprised by your attitude anymore," she muttered, turning around and taking a few steps away from him. "You are a bloody idiot," she said angrily, and gasped in surprise when she heard snickers outside the closed door. They were listening. She turned around to Severus, noticing he did not look surprised at all; in fact, that slightly amused expression was back on his face.

Without a word, she reached for her wand and waved it in the door's direction, silencing the room at last.

"You knew they were listening?" she asked, angrily, and he merely smirked. "What are you playing at?"

"This is hardly a game. Now, if you will calm down and sit, we have a few things we need to discuss."

"Kingsley was right," she muttered, as she walked to the door. "Whatever you need to say to me, they can be present. In fact, why don't you leave me alone and discuss it directly with him?" she asked, reaching for the knob only to be stopped by his hand on her wrist.

"Hermione, wait," he said with a sigh, standing directly behind her.

"What do you want?"

"I have told you that already. We need to speak."

"Then speak," she said briskly, turning around to face him and crossing her arms in front of herself, refusing to sit down.

"I obviously cannot go back to see the Dark Lord until I am fully recovered, or else he will know it was me that took the diadem; that might take a few hours."

"So?"

"So," he said, starting to look irritated, "this might be a good opportunity to destroy those Horcruxes."

"I told you already, we don't have any more basilisk venom."

"And as I said, there are other ways to do it. I was going to suggest Fiendfyre."

"But that is highly dangerous; it easily gets out of control."

"Not if you know what you are doing."

She looked at him for a moment before speaking again.

"When?"

"Now, of course," he replied.

"I don't think that should be done here."

"Of course not. I know of a place that would be appropriate."

"Harry and Ron have to come too."

"That will not be necessary."

"Dumbledore wanted the three of us to find and destroy the Horcruxes; it is only fair that they be there when it is done."

"Very well," he finally agreed. "Go make yourself presentable first; you look a mess."

"You really are unbelievable," she huffed, but before she could turn around to leave he stepped closer, almost pinning her to the wall.

"I think you are right; maybe I should properly thank you for your help," he said, in a low, husky tone, quickly making her legs feel weak. "If it were not for you, the curse would have killed me."

"You said it before; you have saved my life many times."

"Still, I wish I could think of a way to show my appreciation," he said, stepping closer still and making her, in turn, step back, her body now flush against the wall.

"You don't have to…" she said, her voice almost a whisper as she tried to remain in control. Thinking he might die seemed to have put things in perspective for some reason, and suddenly everything that had happened between them, all the bad things, did not seem as important as it had only hours before.

"But what if I want to?" he asked, tilting his head so that his lips were barely an inch away from hers.

She wanted to say something, come up with a smart retort, make him the one nervous instead of her, but her brain had stopped working. How did he always manage to have such a strong effect on her, to render her speechless by his mere closeness? She did not care.

Her eyes locked with his, and she saw something there she could not understand; something she had seen before, but as usual, it was gone before she could really know what it was.

Not that she had long to consider; before she could say a word his lips were on hers, tentative, as if trying to see how she would react. She kept her arms almost rigid at her sides, and it took all her will power not to wrap them around him and pull him closer, but her lips had a mind of their own and soon she found herself kissing him back.

He had not kissed her like that since the very first time, and so much had happened since then.

After a few moments she felt his hands on her hips as his body leaned against hers, finally making contact. His tongue carefully pushed her lips apart and slipped past them, and she could not hold back the small moan.

He made no comment, not even a smirk, but once he noticed her reaction he deepened the kiss. It was still not heated; it actually reminded her of the times he had kissed her before she had gotten her memories back; as if he simply could not hold back, as if he needed to feel her, to touch her.

Still, the memories of those times made her pull back, breaking the kiss. She remained where she was, their faces a few inches apart as they silently looked at one another, his arms still on her hips, their bodies so close. After a few moments, he took a step back.

"There is not much time; I will have to go back to the Dark Lord as soon as my arm goes back to normal. If you want your friends to come with us, then make sure they do not tell anyone else what we are going to do."

"Of course," she said, taking a deep breath, trying to calm her heart down.

"Be careful not to touch the diadem. As insufferable as you might sometimes be, I would not want any accident to occur; the curse would kill you and there would be no way to stop it," he said, and she could not detect any hint of irony in his words.

"I will be careful," she said, trying to hide the small smile that wanted to reach her lips. After almost dying, he was worried about her?

"Very well then," he said, taking a few more steps away from her, "I will wait here; tell Potter and Weasley to get ready. Be careful when you open the door: they are probably still leaning against it, trying to listen and wondering if perhaps the rumours are true and I am sucking your blood and turning you into a creature of the night" he said with a smirk.

Instead of replying, she turned around and opened the door. Sure enough, she found herself face to face with Harry and Ron, both looking at her with a mixture of surprise and curiosity on their faces.

"So now you take to listen behind close doors?" she asked them, irritated.

"Hermione, are you all right?" Harry asked, eyeing her suspiciously.

"Of course I am. You two go get dressed, we are leaving," she said, walking past them. "Thank you for your help, Kingsley," she said, standing in front of the Auror, who had been waiting in the hallway a few feet away.

"Is there anything else I can help you with?" he asked.

"No, you have already done more than enough."

"You are still bleeding," he said, reaching for his wand and waving it over her forehead, healing the cut.

"Thank you," she repeated with a smile.

"I believe we need to talk."

"We will, just not right now. I have a few things I need to do that cannot wait."

"I will come back later today, then," he said, and she nodded, making her way to the stairs, where Harry and Ron were waiting for her.

"Where are you going?" Ron asked.

"Not me; us. We have things to do," she said, walking up the stairs towards her room.

"What things?"

"The Horcruxes," she whispered, when she was sure no one would hear.

"You know where they are?" Harry asked, confused.

"Yes, but I cannot explain right now; just get dressed and wait for me downstairs, will you?"

"But, Hermione, what…"

"Stop asking questions," she hissed. "We don't have much time."

In a matter of minutes she was back downstairs, clean and dressed, with the cup and the diadem safely hidden in her robes, a simple spell preventing the diadem from accidentally touching her skin. Severus was standing by the door waiting for her, his robes fixed and no traces of blood left on his skin. Harry and Ron were waiting for her there as well, standing by Severus and looking at him with something akin to hatred, and he was simply ignoring them, a look of disdain on his face.

"Miss Granger, are you ready?" he asked her, as soon as she was close enough to hear.

"Yes."

"You have both things?"

"Of course."

"What is he talki…"

"Not now," she told Ron curtly. "Where are we going?" she asked next, turning to Severus.

"I have created a Portkey," he said, lifting his hand so that she could see the small crystal vase he was holding. "It will take us there."

With a nod, she touched her finger to the vase and turned to Harry and Ron, waiting for them to do the same.

"I am not sure that is such a good idea," Harry said, hesitantly, looking from her to Severus.

"Just trust me, will you? I will explain as soon as we arrive."

She watched Harry turn to Ron with a questioning frown, but Ron merely shrugged and touched the vase, and after a few moments Harry did the same. Another second and Severus activated the Portkey, taking them all away.

She opened her eyes as soon as her feet touched the ground, and looked around, trying to see where he had taken them. They were standing in the middle of a large room, with no windows and only one door. She could not remember ever being there before.

"What is this place?" Ron asked, as he got to his feet. Now matter how many times he used Portkeys or how much he tried to concentrate, he always ended up falling to the floor.

"Somewhere where we will not be disturbed," Severus replied curtly.

"Care to explain, Hermione?"

Instead of speaking, she merely reached inside her pocket and pulled out the golden cup, holding it in front of her so the boys could see it.

"What is that?" Ron asked, stepping closer to her to get a better look.

"It is Hufflepuff's cup," Harry said in a low voice, his eyes fixed on the small golden cup. "How did you get it? I told you that the place where it was kept was heavily protected, and the wards would have killed anyone without the Dark Mark."

"How do you know that?" Severus asked him, sounding slightly surprised.

"He saw it when he took the potion," Hermione answered, conjuring a small table in front of them and carefully placing the cup on it.

"He knows about the potion?" Harry asked, turning to her, and she could hear the anger in his voice.

"Honestly, Harry, how do you think I got it?"

"What? You said you had made it," he said, confused.

"Well, not exactly," she replied, ignoring Severus' low snort. "I believe I said I had found it, not that I had brewed it. It was Professor Snape that created it."

"Him? Then why didn't you…"

"Tell you before?" she interrupted. "You wouldn't have taken it if you had known where it had come from," she told him, and before he could speak again she continued. "Draco is the one that gave me the cup."

"Malfoy?" Ron asked, surprised. "What does the ferret have to do with any of this?"

"You knew he had been working with me already. When Harry told me only someone with the Mark could get to the cup, I asked him to do it."

"You had no right," Harry said, angrily. "We were supposed to keep the information on the Horcruxes between us; how could you just tell him? It was not your decision to make."

"I'm sorry, Harry, but I knew I could trust him. I saw the opportunity and took it. I wanted to prove to you that Draco could be trusted, that he really wants to help us. Besides, he doesn't know what this is, only that we needed it."

"You say he can be trusted? Then why does he say the ferret's still on Voldemort's side?" Harry asked, turning to Severus.

"Because," she said, before Severus could answer himself, "Professor Snape didn't know all the facts, but now he knows Draco really wants to help our side, right Professor?"

He turned to him as she spoke, silently begging him to agree with her, if only to stop the questioning, at least for the time being.

"Right," he replied curtly after a few moments.

"I still don't think he wants to help; he probably has some other reason for it all."

"He saved all our lives, remember? He warned us about the attack against us when we went searching for the Horcruxes just in time. They would have killed us if not for him."

"Miss Granger, if we could please get this over with; I thought I had made it clear earlier, we do not have much time," Severus thankfully interrupted.

"Why is he here?" Ron asked then.

"He is going to help us destroy the Horcruxes."

"You said Horcruxes; you mean you have more than one?" Harry asked.

"Yes," she replied, flicking her wand at her side, so that the diadem slowly floated out of her pocket and towards the table. "That was Rowena Ravenclaw's diadem."

"So Dumbledore had been right; this diadem is one of the Horcruxes," Harry said, walking closer to the table to take a better look, his hand slowly reaching to touch the beautiful object.

"Don't touch it!" Hermione said just in time, slapping his hand away. "It is cursed."

"Cursed?" Harry asked, taking a step back, not wanting to get near the object anymore. "How do you know?"

"Because I saw what it does, and so did you. It almost killed Professor Snape," she said, turning to Severus for a moment. "He is the one that found it for us, and he is here because he is going to help us destroy both Horcruxes."

"But how? Does he have basilisk venom? Because you already know we don't have any left," Ron said, looking at Severus as if he were waiting for him to pull a basilisk fang from his pocket, or maybe the basilisk itself. She heard Severus sigh irritably at the question, and before he could say anything she explained them the plan.

"We won't use the venom; we will use Fiendfyre to destroy them."

"But you said we couldn't," Ron said. "When I suggested we use it you told me it was too dangerous."

"It is only dangerous in inept hands."

"Well, we are more than able to handle ourselves, so if that is the only reason why you are here…"

"Ron, stop," she interrupted, not wanting to hear any more bickering from any of them. "Can't you just behave yourself for a few minutes? He risked his life to get the diadem, almost got killed by the curse, and will now have to face Voldemort and tell him it is missing; I think he needs a little gratitude, at least," she said angrily, facing Ron all the time, not wanting to meet Severus' gaze as she spoke.

"I hardly believe I need defenders, Miss Granger," he said, curtly. "This is more important to the war than any of you can understand, and the continuance of that war affects me, so it involves me as much as it does any of you, if not more. I have only agreed to let you come here because of Miss Granger's insistence, and already regret that decision. Now, as I said before, I do not have much time, especially not to waste with thick children that cannot see past themselves. You have two choices now; you can both stay here and stand aside as I destroy these objects, or you can leave, and I honestly hope it is the second choice that you take."

She watched Ron and Harry look at one another for a moment, and just as they were about to speak she answered Severus' question herself.

"They will stay, Professor," she said sternly, throwing both Harry and Ron a warning look, daring them to disagree.

"We will," Harry said, after a moment, and Ron nodded, still looking put out by Severus' presence.

"Very well," Severus said, walking closer to the small table where she had left the Horcruxes. "Now if you will step aside, I shall begin."

She watched Harry and Ron hesitate for a moment, and then take a few steps back. Instead of moving with them, she walked closer to Severus.

"Hermione, what are you doing there?"

"Yes, what are you doing here, Hermione?" Severus asked her in a low voice.

"I'll stay here, I'm going to help him," she said back to Harry, before turning to Severus. "I want to know how the curse works, how you manage to control the Fiendfyre."

"Of course you do," he replied, with a hint of a smile touching the side of his lips. "Step back," he said, his hand on her arm pushing her back until they were both a few feet from the table.

"Hermione, just come here, it could be dangerous," she heard Ron say, but she ignored him.

"You know how to cast the curse?" Severus asked in the same low voice, so that only she could hear, and she nodded. "Have you ever tried it before?"

"No."

"Very well," he muttered, waving his wand so that the room was almost completely dark.

She felt him step behind her, his hand slowly trailing down her arm, his fingers wrapping around hers and lifting her hand so that her wand was pointing at the Horcruxes.

"What are you doing?" she asked with her voice soft and her eyes half lidded, enjoying the feeling of his body so close to hers.

"I thought you wanted to learn," he said softly by her ear. "You already know the theory, you just need the practice."

"But Harry and Ron…" she said, unconsciously leaning back against him.

"The room is too dark for them to see," he replied, his lips ghosting over her ear as he spoke. "Now concentrate on the curse, take a moment to go over the steps in your mind," he whispered, his lips slowly moving to her neck.

"You are not making this easy," she breathed, trying to remember the way in which she was supposed to flick and wave her wand, according to the books she had found when researching.

"What would be the fun in that?" he asked, his free hand slowly trailing up her thigh.

"Severus," she hissed, half-heartedly.

"Just focus on the curse," he said, his hand moving up her hips and slowly slipping under her shirt.

"Hermione, what's going on?" asked Ron.

She heard Severus curse under his breath and step back, so that he was only touching her wand hand. Barely a second later she heard Harry whisper "Lumos."

"What's going on?" he asked, taking a step closer to them, and she turned her head to him, not pulling away from Severus' touch because she knew that would make her look guilty of whatever Harry was suspecting.

"I lowered the light for a reason, Potter," Severus hissed angrily.

"What are you doing, Hermione?" he asked, ignoring Severus.

"He will show me how to cast the curse, how to control the Fiendfyre."

"But you already know that," said Ron, stepping closer as well. "The three of us learnt how to cast that months ago."

"Yes, but I never actually cast it before."

"Will the two of you step back and stay put, or will I have to chain you to the wall and gag you?" Severus asked irritably. They both looked at him hatefully for a moment, but then their eyes darted to the Horcruxes on the table, and they seemed to decide they wanted to stay.

"Nox," muttered Harry, but even in the darkness she could tell they hadn't stepped back again, still standing just a few feet from her and Severus.

"Focus on the curse," Severus repeated, although this time his voice was louder and colder, for their audience's benefit. "Once you cast the curse, you need to keep your wand aimed at the base of the fire; and keep your arm steady, otherwise it will get out of control. If it grows too strong you can break the curse, I assume you know how to do that."

"Of course," she replied.

"Simply make sure you don't move your arm, and the concentration is very important as well. Do you think you can do it?"

"Yes."

"Very well," he said, pressing her hand slightly before letting go. "Do it."

She took a moment to focus, her mind clearer now that he wasn't touching her, and then she slowly moved her wand, going through all the complicated flicks the curse required. Just as she was finishing she felt her wand vibrate slightly, and felt the power of the curse around her hand; after a second, a small fire erupted at one of the edges of the table.

"Concentrate on the flame," Severus said from behind her. "Slowly move your wand towards the cup."

Still focusing on the curse, she did as he instructed, narrowing her eyes as she tried to keep her hand steady and will the flames to the side at the same time.

"Wow, that's amazing," she heard Ron mutter when the flames reached the Horcrux, melting it away very slowly. "Look, Harry, it's working. Can I try it too, Hermione?" he asked her eagerly.

"Do not distract her," she heard Severus say sternly, and Ron thankfully fell silent.

"Don't let it grow too much," Severus whispered, stepping closer to her, his hand on hers once more as he helped keep her arm firm. "Just focus on the centre of the fire, forget about the flames," he said, taking her hand more firmly, his body so close it was distracting her. "Focus, Miss Granger," he whispered softly, moving her hand a few inches to the left.

Mesmerised by the flames, she watched as the fire finally melted what was left of the golden cup, a small smile creeping to her lips as she realized she was controlling the curse by herself.

"Now move it to the diadem," Severus instructed, after a moment. "Carefully."

She did as told, feeling his tight grip guiding her as she moved the flames towards the last Horcrux. She watched the fire finally reach the diadem, but for some reason it didn't touch it; the flames seemed to stop less than an inch away, as if the Horcrux were protected by an invisible bubble of some sort.

"What's going on?" she asked Severus.

"I think there is some kind of protection around it. It might take longer, but this curse will break through it," he said. "Make the fire stronger, but only slightly."

Nodding her head, she twisted her wand again, his hand controlling the movement as she strengthened the curse.

"That's it, now let it work," he muttered, and after a few moments she saw the flames start to wear down the protection, slowly closing in on the diadem.

"I think it needs more strength," Ron said from beside her, and from the corner of her eye she saw him raise his wand and aim it at the fire she had created, ready to cast the curse as well.

"Ron, no," she screamed, her free hand shooting to the side to stop it, just like Severus', but that moments distraction proved to be enough to get the fire out of control.

A flash of red brought her attention back to the diadem, now being quickly devoured by the fire as it grew.

"Focus on it, make it lower again," Severus said, but the fire was growing too fast, the heat soon becoming overwhelming.

"Watch out," Harry yelled from behind her, just as one of the legs from the table melted away, making what was left of it fall.

She felt Severus' hand wrap around her waist as he hastily pulled her back, just as the fire touched the floor, inches away from where they had been standing. He moved back so fast he stumbled and fell, with Hermione falling on top of him.

"Hermione!" she heard one of the boys yell from behind her, but she was not sure which one.

The fire kept growing, now almost reaching the ceiling, and she felt Severus' hand on hers again, as he yanked her back, away from the flames.

"You have to stop it," he said, pulling her with him until they reached the wall. "You cast it, and you have to stop it; otherwise it will destroy the entire room before vanishing."

"I can't," she muttered, feeling her arm limp at her side as she watched the flames move closer to her.

Suddenly a sound was heard, a deafening explosion, and what had moments ago been simple, if incredibly large, flames now turned to what looked like a dragon made of fire.

"If you don't stop it now it will be too late," he said, his hand reaching for hers, making her lift her wand at the dragon, but just as she aimed it at it, the fire beast opened its mouth, breathing two balls of fire their way.

She watched, wide eyed, as the red flames moved towards them, too surprised to react, but just before they reached them she felt Severus' hands on her shoulder, pushing her hard to one side while he jumped to the other, both barely avoiding the fire.

"Run!" she heard him yell, just as the dragon stepped closer, its head turning to him for a second before moving on to her.

She watched the fire creature breath another flame and she quickly crawled out of the way. She hastily got to her feet, running now as she felt the dragon move after her, the room soon becoming unbearably hot.

"Hermione, where are you?" she heard Ron call from the other side of the room, but she couldn't see him, and certainly could not stop to reply.

She turned around as she ran, needing to see if the dragon was still after her, how close it was, but just as she turned to it she tripped with her own feet and fell hard, scrambling a few yards before she hit the wall, having nowhere else to run to.

"Hermione, you have to lift the curse," Severus yelled from somewhere to her left, but the dragon was so close now it was blinding her, and she couldn't see where he was. "Hermione, can you hear me?"

"Yes," she managed to yell back, as she lifted her trembling arm towards the dragon.

She saw a flash of blue light to her left, as what looked like water hit the dragon on its side, and the creature tilted its head to send yet another ball of fire at Severus.

"Focus on the curse, aim your wand at the base of the fire and stop it," he yelled, his voice strained as he kept throwing spells and curses at the creature, trying to distract it enough for her to stop it.

Taking a deep breath she wrapped her fingers around her wand more firmly, lowering it so that it was aiming around the beast's belly. Then she began muttering the words that would lift the curse as she slowly waved and flicked her wand in the way she had seen in the book. She felt a faint tinkle in her hand, but it was not enough; she needed to focus.

Slowly getting up, she took the wand in both her hands, starting all over, hoping this time she would gather more power. It was still not working, she was not strong enough, and she was beginning to feel desperate, but then she saw the dragon breath another ball of fire against Severus, heard him scream in pain, and suddenly the wand vibrated in her hands, a flash of blue light erupting from the tip, hitting the dragon, making it lose its shape for a few moments.

She felt her energy drained, and the blue light vanished, the dragon soon regaining its shape and turning to her, its nostrils flaring. She took a step away from it and her back hit the wall; there was nowhere to run. But now she knew she could stop it, now she knew she had enough power; she just needed concentration.

Feeling her legs weak, she lowered herself back to the floor, her wand still firmly held in both hands as she once more began muttering the words and performing the wand movements, a faint but steady ray of blue light hitting the dragon after a few moments.

Encouraged by the ray of light, by the beast's blurring edges, she started chanting louder, focusing more, if possible, on the task. She felt the wand begin to vibrate in her hands as the blue light grew brighter, and that gave the strength she needed to continue.

Her entire arms were shaking after a moment, the effect getting worse as the dragon moved closer to her. She could see its nostrils flare again, and knew she would have to stop it before it managed to breathe fire against her again, for there was nowhere left to run.

She closed her eyes, pushing everything other than the words she had to speak away from her mind, and soon her entire body began to shake badly. Her hands hurt so much she wanted to scream, but she could not mutter any word other than those needed to stop the curse. As the tears rolled down her cheeks she opened her eyes again, satisfaction barely registering in her brain as she saw the dragon had turned back into shapeless flames.

She had made it, it was almost over. A small smile twitched her lips before she realized the flames were still moving towards her. Keeping her wand in one hand she used the other for balance, crawling away from the flames so she would have enough time to completely extinguish them, but her body was still shaking hard and she could not move as fast as the fire did.

With all the strength she had left she concentrated on lifting the curse, the blue light growing wider as the fire grew smaller, but it was so close now the very air around her seemed to be burning her skin.

She heard a loud snapping sound and screamed in pain as she felt the bone in her arm break, but she used her other arm to steady the wand, knowing it was almost over. Just a few more seconds and it would end, at last.

The blue light was steady, and the fire was now barely two feet high. Remembering Severus' words she aimed her wand at its base, wincing in pain as she moved her broken arm, but still keeping it steady enough.

One foot now, its colour quickly turning yellowish, the air around her slowly cooling. She kept her wand still, kept repeating the words as it became smaller and smaller, and with tears still streaming down her cheeks, she softly sighed in relief.

It happened in a fraction of a second; the flame was just about to disappear when her arm wavered, just an inch, but enough to ruin all the hard work. The explosion was blinding, although she heard no sound come from it. All she knew was that one moment the fire was almost gone, and the next yellow flames were being shot into the air in her direction.

With a pained yelled she felt her jeans catch fire, and then her arms burn, as she desperately tried to put that fire out. She heard yells around her, but they seem so far away. It was Severus' voice, asking her to be still as he muttered something, extinguishing the fire. She was so exhausted, her power so drained, that she could do nothing other than fall back, her back hitting the floor hard, making her wince in pain again.

"Hermione," she heard Severus say as he kneeled next to her. "Are you all right?" he asked, but she didn't have enough strength left to respond.

She felt his hands on her legs and screamed in pain, but could not move away.

"Stay still," she heard him mutter, and saw him reach for his wand.

"Hermione?" she heard the boys ask.

"Stand back," Severus yelled, his voice so menacing neither of them approached her, or spoke again.

"Hermione, can you hear me?" he asked softly, kneeling by her head, one of his hands on her cheek, making her turn to him. She could not respond, but nodded instead. "This will hurt, but it will be only a few seconds. I need you to stay still, or it will take longer. Do you understand?" he asked, in the same soft yet concerned tone, and she nodded again.

She heard the rustling of clothes as he stood up, and then kneeled again by her legs, and then cold air hitting her skin from the knees down, as part of her jeans vanished.

She groaned in pain as she felt a tingle of magic against her burned skin, making her legs shake, and then something cold, like a balm of some sort, covering the wounds; although the contrast against her hot flesh made her shiver, she noticed the worse of the pain was gone after a few moments.

"Is that better?" he asked softly, kneeling by her head again, his hand carefully cupping her face, and she managed a small smile in response. "It will need a few more minutes, but it should take away the pain fast, and I doubt it will leave any scar. Where else are you hurt?"

"Arms," she groaned.

"Let me see," he said, slipping his hands behind her shoulders and carefully sitting her up, pulling her to him so that she could rest against his shoulder as he carefully lifted her arms. "This one is broken," he said, stilling his movements when she winced in pain. "I'm sorry," he whispered by her ear, "but I have to move them."

"All right," she whispered, gritting her teeth as he slowly moved both her arms, resting them on her lap.

She winced again when the tip of his wand touched her arm, but said nothing as she felt the bone inside move, snapping back to its original position.

"These burns are superficial," he muttered, as he moved his wand over her arms, and with another tinkle she felt them quickly disappear. "Better?" he asked, and she nodded, noticing most of the pain was gone. "You've hurt your forehead again," he whispered, leaning closer, and she could see a small smile twitching his lips.

She closed her eyes as she felt his fingers on her face, one hand slowly caressing her check as the other checked what she assumed was the injure on her forehead.

"What do you think you are you doing?" Harry asked angrily, and she forced her eyes opened again.

"Checking her wounds, Potter, that should be obvious," Severus said, calmly.

"Yeah, well, I think you're finished now," Ron replied, in the same tone.

"I hope you do realize, Mr Weasley, that you are the one to blame for what happened here. Your foolishness and disregard for commands could have gotten Miss Granger killed; it almost did, in fact, so why don't you let me finish what I am doing and remain quiet, if only for a moment, or you might find yourself accidentally muted, in the best of cases," he replied, turning back to her as if they had not been interrupted, although she noticed he was keeping his distance now, his soft touch gone.

She saw him reach for his wand again and wave it over her forehead, healing her before moving it back to her legs, removing the balm.

She slowly sat up straight, bending her legs so that she could take a closer look. The skin looked slightly reddish, but there was not a single mark left from the burns.

"The colour should go back to normal in a few minutes. You were lucky to be attended so fast; it will not scar, as I suspected."

"Thank you," she muttered, stretching her legs, noting all the pain was gone.

"Not many would have been able to control a Fiendfyre curse once it reached such an advanced stage. You did well."

"Thanks," she repeated, with a smile.

"Are you ready to go home, then?" Harry asked, throwing her a meaningful look, and her eyes instantly darted to Severus, silently begging him to give her an excuse not to, to give her some time before she was forced to explain both his and her behaviour to her friends.

"She needs to take some potions before she can go back."

"Can't you just take them to headquarters?"

"I am not your personal healer, Potter, and nor hers. If she wants to recover she will need the potions, and if she wants the potions she will have to go to my laboratory to get them," he replied coldly.

"All right, take us there then, so we can get this over with."

"You will certainly not set foot in my laboratory; either of you. I am forced to take Miss Granger there because she needs the potions, but you are not allowed anywhere near my property."

"But…"

"This is not an argument, Mr Weasley. If you do not want your little friend here to recover, then please say so. I have more important things to do than deliver potions that took weeks to brew to ungrateful children."

He gave them a moment to respond, but they remained silent.

"Here," he said curtly, conjuring a crystal vase like the one they had used before and turning it into a Portkey. "You can wait for her back with the Order; she will be sent back as soon as she has recovered enough."

"Hermione, do you…"

"I'll be all right," she interrupted Ron, keeping her voice low, trying to sound weak and in pain. "I will go back as soon as possible."

"If anything happens to her…"

"Save yourself the trouble, Potter. If I had wanted to harm her, I would have done so long ago; now will you take the Portkey or will I have to personally take you back to headquarters?"

Both Ron and Harry looked hatefully at Severus for a moment, before turning to the vase.

"Be careful, Hermione," Ron muttered, just before they both touched the Portkey, finally being transported away, leaving her and Severus alone.


	50. jealous

"Thank you," Hermione sighed, as soon as Harry and Ron were gone.

"One would think you would want to go with your friends," Severus said.

"They will have questions."

"Questions?"

"About us," she replied, looking away.

"I see."

"After what they saw this morning and now, they will want explanations," she said, still not looking at him, feeling somewhat embarrassed.

"What will you say to them?"

"I don't know," she answered truthfully. She didn't even know the explanation herself.

Well, that was not entirely true; she knew how she felt about Severus, even if she still tried to deny it, and she thought he cared for her too, in some way, or at least that was what had she felt, from the way he had behaved, how he had tried to protect her, how his fingers had caressed her cheek, caring, almost lovingly, but how would she ever explain that to her friends? She shook her head, trying to push those thoughts away, and then turned to him.

"I don't know what I will say; I need some time to think, before facing them."

She was glad he didn't press, that he didn't ask her any more questions, although she could see he had them; instead, he simply stepped closer to her and asked, "Can you stand?"

"You're hurt," she said, instead of answering his question, as her eyes fell on his shoulder.

"It's nothing," he said dismissively, waving his wand over the wound and instantly healing it.

"I really want to learn how to do that."

"After your lesson today, I am not exactly inclined to teach you anything else."

"That was not my fault," she said, "I was doing all right until Ron distracted me."

"You cannot let others distract you; you have to focus on what you are doing and nothing else. You could have been killed today."

"He distracted you too," she said, trying to hide the small smile that threatened to reach her lips.

"Can you stand?" he asked again, ignoring her comment.

"I'm not sure," she said, moving both her hands to the floor for balance as she slowly turned and bent her legs, trying to get up. Although she didn't feel any pain, she knew there was no way her legs would support her weight; if she managed to stand she would fall in a second, but still she tried and fell back hard before she had managed to even get on her knees.

"Don't," he said, holding up his hand and stepping closer to her as soon as he saw her fall. She watched him both surprised and confused as he swiftly kneeled by her side and slipped one of his arms under her knees and the other behind her back. "Hold on," he told her, and she quickly wrapped her arms around his neck so she wouldn't fall when he carefully stood up.

It was a strange feeling, holding on to him as he carried her towards the door. A part of her felt comfortable, feeling him so close, having an excuse to hold him, but the other part felt nervous; nervous for what he might expect from her, for not knowing if he felt the same way she did, or was simply helping her because it was the easiest way to get her out of there, seeing as her legs didn't seem to want to work.

They finally reached the door and she tightened her hold around his neck when the arm around her back moved, feeling his breath against her ear as he muttered the words needed to lift the wards and get the door open. She wished she could stay like that forever, so close to him, feeling safe, but she moved back as soon as the door opened and he wrapped his arm around her waist again.

The door led to a set of stairs, and although she couldn't see the steps clearly enough to count them, she could tell there were many.

"Maybe you should let me down, I think I can manage to walk by myself now," she said, not wanting him to have to climb all the way up with her in his arms.

"If I let you down you will fall," he replied, taking the first few steps.

"Well, you can't go all the way up there carrying me, I'm too heavy."

"Nonsense," he muttered, tightening his arms around her as he continued up the stairs.

"Oh, such a strong wizard," she mocked when he started walking a little faster, beginning to feel self-conscious and hoping her comment would make him put her down, but he simply turned to face her, an eyebrow raised as he looked at her, seemingly amused instead of annoyed at her comment. Still, he said nothing else and neither did she, until they reached the top of the stairs.

With a wave of his hand the lights turned on, and she looked around, instantly recognizing the place.

"We're at your house?" she asked, as he walked down the hallway she knew led to his lab.

"It was the safest place to go," he replied, moving his hand again to open the door. The room was completely dark and as he took a step inside she heard the sound of breaking glass and he froze in place, his body tense as he raised his wand in front of them, standing still for a few seconds, trying to hear any other strange sound.

After a moment he flicked his wand and lit the room, making her blink a few times as her eyes adjusted to the light.

"What in Merlin's name has happened here?" he asked in a low voice as he took in his surroundings, his wand still held firmly in front of him. Before she could reply he had moved to the working table in the middle of the room and sat her next to one of his cauldrons before turning back around, a few rays of light erupting from his wand as he whispered spells she had never heard before. "Someone's been here, but it was only one person, and they are gone now," he muttered, moving to the door. "What could they have been…?"

"Severus," she interrupted shyly, but he didn't even turn to her, his eyes searching the shelves instead, trying to see what was missing. "Severus," she repeated a little more firmly, and he finally looked at her. "That might have been me."

"What?" he asked with a frown, stepping closer to her.

"Well, I came here looking for the potion you needed," she muttered nervously as she looked down at the floor. "A few bottles might have fallen while I was looking for it."

Now that she could take the time to observe the room she realized the damage she had caused was much bigger than she had thought at first. Dozens of broken vials and flasks lay on the floor, some of them clean and empty since she had vanished its fillings when they had fallen, but others still had their contents, the potions mixing together in small puddles all over the room, some of them giving off an awful smell, dark smoke floating over others.

"You did this?" he asked, his eyes resting on the floor again, taking in the damage.

"I was in a hurry, and might have knocked down a few vials searching for the right one," she replied, still not looking at him.

"Do you have any idea how many valuable potions you destroyed?"

"I'm sorry," she said, "but I considered finding the potion you needed before the curse killed you more important than worrying about the vials that fell as I searched."

He looked at her for a moment and then turned back to the potions on the floor, vanishing the broken glass and cleaning the liquid without saying a word, something she appreciated. She had already had enough arguments for one day, and knew more were waiting for her as soon as she returned to headquarters.

"Are you feeling better?" he asked after a few moments, once the room was clean again.

"I think so," she replied. "Sorry about the potions."

"No matter," he said as he walked to where she was sitting. He wrapped his fingers around one of her ankles and lifted her leg, resting her bare foot against his chest. "Does this hurt?" he asked, and she shook her head. "The skin colour has already gone back to normal," he said, as his other hand moved softly from her heel to her knee and back. "You will need some potions before you can walk," he told her, walking to one of the shelves by the wall and retrieving three small vials.

"Do I really have to?" she asked when he walked back to her. When he raised an eyebrow in question she muttered, "They usually taste awful."

Although a small smile touched his lips at her comment he said nothing, just handed her the potions and waited until she had taken them, not even speaking when she grimaced and shook her head after the last one.

"The potions will take a few minutes to work," he said, and she nodded. "There was blood on the floor, did you cut yourself?"

"I had to climb on a chair to get to the potion and I fell and hit my head."

"Did you fall on any of the potions?" he asked, suddenly sounding alarmed.

"No."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes, I am sure. I did not fall on any of the potions."

"Let me see the cut," he said, leaving the empty vials next to her.

"It's all right, Kingsley healed it before we left headquarters."

"I see," he said, stepping back, suddenly serious again, although she wasn't sure what had caused the change.

"I really am sorry I dropped those potions," she said, the first thing that came to mind after a few moments of uncomfortable silence.

"Never mind, I suppose there really wasn't time to be careful," he replied, his tone still slightly cold.

"Still, I…"

"If you are feeling better, then maybe I should take you back to headquarters," he said in the same tone. What was wrong now? Had she done something to upset him, or was he just being his usual, snarky self?

"That won't be necessary; I think I can walk," she replied just as coldly, getting off of the table and managing to take two whole steps before her knees gave way.

"It seems not," he said catching her just as she was about to hit the floor and pulling her back up against him. "But if you do not want me to take you back to the Order, I suppose I could call someone else and ask them to come for you. Perhaps you would rather it was Kingsley taking you back to headquarters."

"What?" she asked with a confused frown.

"The two of you seem to have grown rather close; perhaps you would prefer his company."

"Me and Kingsley? That's stupid."

"Stupid?"

"Yes," she said firmly. Was he jealous of Kingsley? Why would he ever feel that way? Surely there must be another reason for his attitude.

"Very well, then," he said after a moment, both his hands moving to her hips as he walked her back, lifted her up and sat her on the desk again, quickly stepping back away from her.

"Merlin, what's wrong with you now?" she asked with a sigh. She was so tired of it.

"Excuse me?"

"Do I need to get Ron and Harry here, is that what you want?"

"What are you talking about?"

"I don't know, I honestly don't know. You only seem to treat me well when they are around, for some reason. If what you want is for them to find out, perhaps as a way of torturing Harry, then just go ahead and tell him; there's no need to play with me."

"Is that so?" he asked, his head tilted to the side as he watched her for a moment. "Here I was, thinking you liked it better when I didn't treat you nicely, that you enjoyed my playing with you," he said in a low tone, but his expression remained cold.

"This isn't a game," she said angrily, pushing herself back off the table, and somehow managing to stand.

"No it's not," he said just as angry, stepping closer to her. "You think it's funny, what you're doing to me?"

"What I'm doing to you?" she nearly screeched, her eyebrows lifting in surprise at his audacity. "I'm not doing anything to you!"

"Is that what you think?" he asked, stepping even closer to her. "Do you really not know?" he murmured as he took another step and moved one of his legs between hers, hastily pulling her closer to him, making her whimper when she felt him hard against her thigh. "I don't think I am the one playing here."

"I don't…" she started, shaking her head, but she didn't know what to say.

"Do you think this is easy? Or fun?" he snarled, leaning closer, his lips barely an inch from hers. "Trying to stay away from you, to protect you, having to watch you throw yourself at Kingsley or Draco when all I want to do is push you against the wall and feel your body writhe around mine."

"Throw myself at them?" she asked angrily, moving her hands to his chest to push him away, but he quickly wrapped his fingers around her wrists, pushing her hands back down, pinning them to the table on either side of her.

"Don't think I haven't noticed," he whispered by her ear. "The way they look at you, the way they talk to you, the way they touch you; I know you've noticed that too. Is that what you want? Them?"

She couldn't bring herself to speak, so she simply shook her head no.

"Then why do you do it? Is it to torture me?"

"T-Torture you?" she whimpered as his lips ghosted over her neck.

"Yes. You know I'm watching," he whispered, his hands caressing up her arms and then moving around her waist, pulling her flush against him. "You know what I want," he said, his lips nibbling on her earlobe, making her moan again. "You know you're driving me crazy."

"I…" she started, but before she could speak his lips moved to hers, kissing her deeply, full of passion and desire, taking her breath away.

She wrapped her hands around his neck, not wanting to hold back this time, desperate to feel him again.

"Severus," she moaned into the kiss, and felt him pull back.

Both breathing heavily, they looked into each other's eyes, not talking, not moving, just watching. She could sense the silent question in his gaze, the way out he was offering, but she did not want to take it; there was no other place she would rather be in, no other thing she would rather be doing. She wanted to touch him, to kiss him, to feel him again, and he must have easily read her expression, her thoughts, for he leaned closer to her and kissed her again.

It was different this time. The fire was there, the passion, the desire, but it was so much more. His lips moved slowly against hers, caring, tender, his hands moving to her shoulders, keeping her in place, as if he feared she would ran away.

Maybe she would have, perhaps the previous day, but not now. She knew what she wanted at last, was ready to accept it, and there would be no more running, no more hiding, no more pretending. It was about time she went for what she wanted.

Without breaking the kiss she moved her hands to the desk behind her and sat on it again, her legs wrapping around his hips and pulling him closer to her. Sensing she was not about to leave he let go of her shoulders, his hands softly caressing down her side, stopping around her waist for a moment before moving back up, lifting her shirt as they moved, breaking the slow, sensual kiss only long enough to push it over her head and throw it to the floor beside them.

Then his hands touched her skin, and it felt as if he hadn't touched her that way in years. She could feel her heart beating faster, her body tingling at his touch, like it did whenever his skin made contact with hers. She had no idea why _it_ happened, she had never felt that way before him, or with anyone other than him, but every time _it_ happened she couldn't help but wish it would never stop. It blocked out all conscious thought and all that was left was the desire, the need for him.

Her arms moved around his neck, pulling him closer to her before letting her hands trail between them, fumbling as she tried to unbutton his robes. There were so many buttons it was exasperating, but she still groaned when he broke the kiss and leaned back slightly, giving her hands more room to work.

"Stupid robes," she muttered frustrated after a few moments, using both hands to tear the robes open, sending buttons flying everywhere, one of them painfully hitting her cheek, making her yelp and then laugh loudly. "Well, that didn't go as I expected," she said, still laughing.

"You could have just used your wand," he said, but when she looked at him she saw him looking at her in amusement. She wondered for a moment if the fact that he looked amused half the times he looked at her was a good or a bad thing, but then his hands rested on hers, and she couldn't think any more.

She was still clutching his robes, so instead of making her let go of the fabric he guided her hands apart and over his shoulders, his robes soon pooling on the floor around his feet.

"Perhaps I should do this myself," he said in a husky tone, his lips quirked in a half smile. It was amazing how different he looked without his hard expressions or his trademark sneer. She loved watching him smile, even if it was only faintly; especially if that smile was directed to her.

"I don't think so," she said, shaking her head slightly, her hands moving back to his chest, playfully slapping his own away as her mind focused on the task, her fingers slowly undoing his shirt, revealing the pale skin beneath, the hard, lean body she longed for.

She pulled him closer again, her lips ghosting over his neck before moving to his chest, softly kissing the skin as it was revealed, only stopping when his hand on her chin pulled her up, his lips finding hers for another deep kiss.

She moaned into the kiss, pushing the shirt over his shoulders and leaning forward, feeling his hard chest against hers, his soft hands on her skin, and wanting so much more.

His lips trailed down her neck and with a small moan she closed her eyes and focused on the way he was making her feel, tilting her head to give his mouth better access.

His hands roamed her body, his touch gentle yet firm, making her feel special, wanted, and setting every nerve ending on fire.

She felt his hands move behind her back, his fingers easily unclasping her bra and pushing it down her arms and out of the way before his lips moved lower, his tongue flicking over a hardened nipple, making her moan and arch back.

"So beautiful," she heard him mutter against her skin as his hands moved to cup her breasts. She buried her hand in his hair, pulling him closer to her body as she arched into his touch. But it wasn't enough; she wanted more, needed more. She needed to feel all of him, to have him inside her again.

Her hands moved around his neck, his shoulders, down his chest, his lips still closed around her nipple as her hands reached his trousers, her fingers undoing the belt and pushing down the zipper with a speed she didn't think possible, at least for her.

Tightening her legs around his hips, she pushed him closer so she could reach under his clothes, her fingers slipping into his trousers and wrapping around his erection. The groan she got in response gave her the bravado she needed, and she started moving her hand up and down, feeling his hips start moving against her after a moment.

His warm lips left her skin as he stood straight, his eyes closed as she stroked him slowly, then faster, but after a few moments she heard him groan again, his fingers wrapping around her hands, pulling them away from him and pinning them behind her.

Holding both her wrists in one hand he used the other to reach for his wand, a single flick vanishing her jeans and underwear, leaving her completely naked in front of him. Then, without a word, he pulled her to the edge of the desk, spreading her legs further apart, the tip of his erection teasing her entrance.

"Please," she whimpered, wrapping her legs around him again, pulling him closer. He looked deep into her eyes, as if he were looking for something there, and then he kissed her, slow and full of passion, pushing inside of her at the same time.

His thrusts were slow, deep, his tongue mimicking his hips as he moved against her, his hands caressing every bit of skin they could reach, making her feel worshipped, almost…loved.

As good as it felt, soon it wasn't enough for them anymore, and as the pace increased she began pushing back against him, her hips meeting his thrust for thrust, his hands shifting to her waist, controlling her movements, hers travelling to his shoulders instead, her nails digging into his flesh as she silently begged him for more.

He buried his hands in her hair, tilting her head back as his lips trailed down her neck, finding all the sensitive spots and making her moan his name again and again. Then his other hand moved between their bodies, his thumb rubbing her clit, making her arch back until she was resting against the desk.

She heard him whisper softly against her skin between kisses, words she couldn't understand, his hips moving faster, his thrusts becoming harder as they moved as one. She wanted to tell him how good it felt, how much she wanted him, loved him, but was too scared to say it, scared it would make him stop, that it would push him away from her, even though his actions made her think he might feel the same way.

His thumb started moving faster against her clit, making her muscles tighten around him as she shivered and nibbled on her lower lip, her eyes fixed on him as he kissed her body, as he moved deep inside of her.

She could feel the tension building inside of her, and knew he wasn't far behind, his thrusts loosing their rhythm, becoming almost erratic as he groaned against her skin.

"Severus," she moaned again when he leaned down, his warm mouth closing around her nipple, his tongue flicking over it skilfully, the sensations more than she could take.

With another groan he sped up his movements, changing the angle of his thrusts just enough to hit that spot within her that made her scream in pleasure, her body arching against him as she came, her muscles rhythmically contracting around him, pulling him with her.

She wasn't sure how long they had been like that, her resting back against his desk and him against her, but she wouldn't mind staying like that for hours. Days. Slowly, they came back down, their breathings still ragged, their hearts beating wildly, and after a few moments she felt him move again. But he didn't step away as she thought he would, as he had almost every other time. No; this time he moved his hand behind her neck, pulling her up with him, his eyes locked on hers, their faces so close they were almost touching.

Without saying a word he leaned forward, his lips ghosting over hers for a moment, lightly nibbling on her lower lip before kissing her. She moaned lightly and felt his tongue slip inside her mouth, deepening the kiss, moving against hers in a slow caress. He was so close she could feel his heart beating against her, faster and faster as the kiss deepened.

Even after all they had been through, after all they had done together, she knew without a doubt she had never felt better than in that very moment, with him holding her in his arms, kissing her softly. Nothing else mattered; nothing else existed. For a few, precious minutes the world was reduced to them, and she couldn't imagine a better world.

As he held her close, as he kissed her, she knew she couldn't deny what she felt any longer. She loved him, loved him more than she had ever loved anyone, and as much as she feared to admit it, as a part of her told her she had to be mistaken, she also knew he loved her back.


	51. the parents

"I should go back to the Dark Lord's headquarters; he will want to know what happened

"I should go back to the Dark Lord's headquarters; he will want to know what happened," Severus said, as he finished dressing.

"But your arm isn't fully healed yet; he will know you were cursed," Hermione replied, buttoning up her jeans.

He looked at his hand for a few moments, seemingly lost in thought.

"Perhaps a glamour can hide that," he finally said, waving his wand over his arm. The charm covered most of the blackness, but the hand still looked darker than the rest of his skin."

"That won't be enough; he will know," she said, as she tried to come up with an excuse so she could get him to wait a little longer before going back to Voldemort. "I have wanted to ask something over the last few days, but didn't find the right moment."

"What?"

"My parents; I really would like to see them. I thought perhaps you could take me to them before you leave."

"There is a reason why they are away, and a reason why you haven't been to where they are. They are still a target, you know that."

"I do, but how would my going there put them in danger? I hardly believe someone would follow me to get to them, and I'm only asking to see them once, not to go there every day."

"If someone…"

"Please, Severus," she interrupted. "Just this once."

"Very well," he replied after a few moments. "I will take you there before going to the Dark Lord, but you cannot stay there long. If you are willing to jeopardise their safety only so you can see them, then I won't take any more risks for protecting them."

"I won't, I promise. I really appreciate all you have done for them."

He took a moment to look at her, taking in her shirt, the sleeves burned away, and her jeans, missing from the knees down.

"Wait here," he said, as he moved to the door. "I will get you some robes; you cannot go looking like that."

She frowned for a moment, not sure what he was talking about, and then she followed his gaze. "Oh, right," she muttered, waving her wand over her the shirt, trying to fix it, but there was not much to be done for the jeans.

Without another word he walked out of the lab, and after a moment she followed, walking down the hallway and into the library, her eyes scanning the shelves as she waited for him to return.

"I thought I'd told you to wait for me in the laboratory," he said from the doorway, walking inside and handing her the robes.

"I like it better here," she simply muttered as she put them on and waved her wand over them, adjusting them to the right size before buttoning them up.

"Shall we go, then?"

"Yes."

With a small flick of his wand a book came soaring through the air toward them, landing neatly on Severus' hand.

"Portus," she heard him whisper as he moved his wand over the book, making it glow for a second before it went back to normal. "Let's go then."

She walked closer to him, adjusting the robes again as she moved, and then with one last look at him she touched the Portkey, the room around her spinning as they were transported away.

She kept her eyes closed until her feet touched solid ground again, and when she opened them she found herself standing a few feet away from a small, old looking house.

"Are they here?" she asked, when he stepped closer to the door, but he didn't reply. Instead, he aimed his wand to the door and started muttering spell after spell lifting the wards so they could go inside.

"Hurry," he said after a few moments, opening the door for her as his eyes searched their surroundings, trying to see if there was someone close by, watching. After only a few moments he followed her inside and closed the door behind him, quickly warding the house once more.

"Severus, is that you?" she heard her mother call from another room, and she instantly turned to him with a frown. Severus? Had she just called him by his name?

"Yes," he replied, clearly avoiding her eyes as he walked towards the room where she guessed her mother was.

"I am making tea, would you like some?" her mother asked, her back to the door they had just stepped through.

"No, thank you. I will leave in a few moments."

"We weren't expecting y…" her mother started, turning around, but stopped when her eyes rested on her. "Hermione!" she all but yelled, quickly walking to her and hugging her as if she hadn't seen her in months. "Where have you been? We were so worried about you. We hadn't…"

"I'm all right, mum, really," she said, gently pushing her mother away so she could breath. "I'm sorry I couldn't visit you any sooner, but it wasn't safe."

"Hermione, is that you?" her father called, stepping into the kitchen and trapping her in another hug as soon as she had managed to free herself from her mother's arms. "You had us so worried."

"I know, dad, and I'm really sorry, but I couldn't come here sooner," she told him, repeating what she had said to her mother moments before.

"Dear Merlin, what is this racket?" another voice came from behind her, and she turned around, surprised to find a tall, skinny blond woman standing in the doorway, impeccably dressed and with an air of superiority around her she found strangely familiar. "Severus," the woman said with a small nod in his direction.

"Narcissa," he replied after a moment. "I hope you are adapting well to your new accommodation."

"Hardly. You left me here with no wand and surrounded by Muggles. How am I to adapt to this kind of life?" she said, managing to sound upset and proper at the same time. "And who might this be?" she asked intrigued, as soon as her eyes rested on Hermione, standing next to Severus.

"This is our daughter, Hermione," her mother replied, rather briskly.

"Hermione," she repeated thoughtfully, and then she saw recognition shine in the woman's eyes. "You are Potter's Mudblood," she said, disgust clear in her face. "We have met before, I believe. I have heard my son talk about you, a filthy little…"

"Narcissa," Severus cut her in a cold, warning tone before Hermione could say anything. "That will be enough, unless you wish to find yourself in a worse situation than the one you are currently in. Miss Granger here is part of the reason why I am helping you, and why your son is still alive, so I would advise you to show better manners, if you know what is good for you."

"I see," Narcissa replied with a cold smile, her eyes searching her face before moving back to Severus. "Find myself in a worse situation, you say?" she asked disdainfully. "I am a hostage here, unable to see my husband or my son, not even knowing if they are still alive, and without any means to look after myself. I hardly believe I could find myself in a worse situation."

"Maybe you would like to put that theory to test. If you think this is worse than what the Dark Lord would do to you and your family if he found you, then please, let me know. I will take you to him myself."

"You think your threats will work on me? You surely know me better than that, my dear Severus. Don't think you can fool me into believing you are helping my son out of the kindness of your heart; you have always done whatever was best for you and you alone," she said, throwing Hermione a long look she wasn't sure how to interpret. "You will keep me safe for now, because it is the only way Draco will agree to help you, and I am sure you have much to lose if something happened to me," Narcissa continued in a low voice. "Still, you told me you would help my son, and I expect you to; otherwise, you will know a side of me very few have ever seen, and you know me well enough to know I am much more than a proper Pureblood housewife; keep that in mind," she said threateningly, and without another word walked back out of the kitchen.

"That woman is Draco's mother," Hermione said after a few moments of silence. It wasn't a question.

"Narcissa Malfoy, yes."

"What is she doing here, with my parents?"

"You asked me to help Draco, and that is what I am doing; there is no need for me to explain my actions or for you to question me. She is here because she needed to be taken somewhere safe."

"I wasn't questioning you," she said in a low voice, a small smile on her lips. "I was just thinking, if she is anything like her son, she is probably putting my parents through hell." She turned back to her parents, both sitting at the table a few feet away, discreetly giving them some privacy.

"If your parents are anything like you, then I am sure they will survive," he replied. "I should go now."

"No, wait," she said, before he could move. "You can't go back to him yet, why don't you stay here until you are completely healed? My mother makes the best tea in London, I assure you."

He looked at her for a long moment, and then at his hand. She was right, the skin was already dark enough for anyone to notice, and she was sure Voldemort would take a close look.

"Please," she said in a low voice, taking his darkened hand in hers.

"Very well, but I cannot stay here long," he finally agreed, walking with her over to the table and sitting in the only chair left, between her and her mother, who instantly rose and retrieved two more cups from the cupboard, silently pouring them some tea before seating down again.

"How have you been?" she asked her parents, wanting to break the strange silence in the room. "We didn't get to talk much the last time I saw you."

"We are all right," her mother replied, "but how about you dear? Are you feeling better? Perhaps you should stay here with us until it is safe to return home."

"I can't, mum, but you don't need to worry, I am all right."

"Do you…" her father hesitated, and turned to Severus. "Does she…?" he started again, tapping his forehead with a finger. It took her a few seconds to realize what he was asking.

"Yes, I remember now," she said reassuringly, and her parents sighed in relief.

"You had us so worried, dear," her mother told her in a low voice, still sounding concerned. "What happened?"

"It was nothing, really. Just a spell that backfired," she lied with a small shrug.

"Those things can be dangerous, you have to be careful," her father said. "Perhaps you should not use magic anymore, at least until you are feeling better."

"I am fine, really," she insisted, starting to feel exasperated although she knew her parents were just worried about her. They could be a little overprotective sometimes, but she couldn't blame them. It was lucky they didn't know much about her life in the Wizarding world, or they would probably lock her up if only to keep her safe.

"It was simply an unfortunate accident, but your daughter is a very capable witch, you needn't worry about her," Severus said, thankfully stopping her mother's retort.

"It is a good thing you are there to take care of her, Severus," her mother said, a grateful smile on her lips as she turned to him.

"Yes, Severus, we appreciate everything you have done for us," her father added.

Her eyes darted between her mother and father for a few moments, surprised they seemed so comfortable around a man that usually scared at first sight. Her mother was a very social person, she knew, but still, calling him 'Severus' and talking to him as if they were friends…it was a little disconcerting to say the least.

"It is my job," Severus simply replied, wrapping his hands around the cup of tea in front of him but not drinking. She could see he was not comfortable, so out of his element, and although a part of her felt sorry for him, for having forced him into that situation by insisting he stayed, another part was amused at his behaviour. It was nice seeing him like that, he looked more relaxed than she had ever seen him around others, and she couldn't help the small smile that formed on her lips.

They remained in silence for a moment, the only sound in the room that of Severus' fingers tapping the small cup still between his hands. He had beautiful hands, she noticed, not for the first time. His fingers were long and elegant, their every move graceful and precise. An image of those same fingers on her body suddenly crossed her mind, memories of the wicked things they could do, and when their eyes met a second later she quickly looked away, not wanting him to know what she was thinking, his quirked eyebrow telling her he already did.

"So, Hermione, we never asked how the two of you met," her mother asked, breaking the silence again. She hated silence, always had; that was probably the reason why she talked so much.

"He…we met at Hogwarts," she replied hesitantly.

"Really?" her mother asked, turning to Severus. "Are you a teacher?"

"I was," he said. "Potions Master."

"Potions?" her mother asked, thoughtfully. "Oh," she gasped after a moment. "Her Potions professor! She talked so much about you."

"Is that so?" he asked amused, turning to her, making her feel more nervous than she already did, and she quickly looked away. It sounded different when they said it that way. Yes, he had been her teacher, but she didn't think of him that way anymore.

"Yes," her mother answered. "But…I thought you didn't like your Potions professor. The things you said…"

"Oh, really? Do tell," Severus said, and she could feel him looking at her so she faced him, a serious expression on her face even as she felt her cheeks go red.

"Well, you were a right nasty piece of work back then, and you can't deny it," she said, hearing her mother gasp in surprise at her words. She saw the shadow of a smile cross his lips, but she wasn't sure whether it was from what she had just said or from some witty reply he was holding back. Either way, she decided not to ask. "I did like the subject, though," she said with a shrug before her mother could say anything that would embarrass her even more.

"Yes, she mentioned it a few times," her father said, before quickly changing the subject. He could always sense when something made her uncomfortable. "Severus, we would like to know how much longer we have to stay here."

"Not much longer, probably," he replied, visibly relaxing now that the conversation had moved back to a subject he controlled. "As soon as I know for sure you are not a main target anymore, I will let you know."

"It's not that we don't appreciate everything you have done for us," her mother said. "We just miss our home."

"I am sure you do, and I know having Narcissa here is not making things any easier."

"It's not that bad, really," her mother said with a smile. "She has only left her bedroom three times since she arrived, and only speaks to either of us if it is strictly necessary."

"That is probably for the best. She is not used to being surrounded by Muggles," said Severus.

"Had you met her before, Hermione?"

"Yes. I'd seen her once I believe, a few years ago, in the Quidditch World Cup, but I know her son," she said. "And her husband," she muttered, in an afterthought.

"I assume by your expression they are as nice as our guest."

"At times," she replied, images of Lucius Malfoy playing in her mind, the memory of what he had done to her, how much he'd hurt her, the feeling of the cold steel of the knife he had stabbed her with. She didn't want to think about that, but was unable to push the thoughts away.

"I believe it is time for me to leave." Severus' voice thankfully interrupted her thoughts, and she quickly turned to him. He looked at her with a concerned expression for a moment, before her mother spoke and he turned to her.

"Oh no, Severus, why don't you stay for lunch?" her mother asked.

"I am sorry, but I have things I need to attend to; things that cannot wait," he replied, getting up. "Thank you for the tea; goodbye," he said politely but firmly, walking out of the kitchen without giving them time to insist.

"I'll be right back," Hermione murmured, quickly following him out. "Severus," she called, watching him stop as he reached the door.

"Are you all right?" he asked, looking closely at her, probably knowing what she had been thinking of only moments before.

"Yes," she replied, although her voice sounded weak even to her own ears.

"I have to go."

"No you don't. You can stay here, or go to the Order; you don't have to go back to him," she said, stepping closer to him.

"That is not an option," he told her, retrieving the book they had used to get there from his pocket and flicking his wand over it, setting the Portkey to take her back to the Order. "It is set to return you to the Order's headquarters as soon as you activate it. You should not stay here long, it's safer that way."

"What will happen when you tell him the diadem's gone?" she asked, ignoring the book he was holding out for her, and he finally set it on a small table by them before replying.

"He won't be happy, but I will take care of it."

"Don't lie to me," she said, in a low voice. "He has hurt you for much less. What will he do to you?"

"That doesn't matter."

"It matters to me," she said, and when her eyes locked on his she saw confusion there, mixed with something else, perhaps hope. She wasn't sure what to make of it.

"Why?"

"Why what?" she asked, confused.

"Why does it matter to you?"

"Because I care about you, can't you see?" she whispered, words she never thought she would say, looking into his eyes, trying to make him see the truth in them, trying to convince him to stay.

"There is a war raging on, and the Order needs the information I can provide. I have to go," he said, gently pushing a stray lock of hair behind her ear.

"No, you don't. Let someone else do it, we can find a way, there has to be another way," she said, her voice soft, almost pleading.

"You know that is not possible; I have to go back. There are things more important than my well being."

"Please, don't go," she insisted for the last time, and instead of replying he leaned closer, tilting his head down and kissing her softly.

After a moment he broke the kiss, taking a quick look around the room to make sure they were still alone before his eyes rested on hers again.

"The longer I wait, the worse it will be," he said after a moment. "If I don't return, make sure the last Horcrux is destroyed before Potter faces…"

"Don't say that," she interrupted, tears forming in her eyes as she pressed her finger to his lips, trying to stop the words she didn't want to hear. "Please don't say that."

"I don't know what will happen when I meet the Dark Lord again, and you have to be ready. If I don't return," he repeated, stopping her when she tried to interrupt again, "make sure the remaining Horcrux is destroyed. If you need access to the Dark Lord's headquarters or information contact Draco; do not trust anyone else."

"Draco? So you trust him? You will help him?"

"I told you I would," he replied. "Be careful," he said, leaning closer to her again for another kiss.

"Don't go," she whispered against his lips, knowing it wouldn't make any difference.

"I have to."

"Then promise me that you will be all right, tell me you'll return."

"I can't do that," he said, and she felt tears well in her eyes as she wondered if this would be the last time she saw him, the last time she would be able to touch him, kiss him, hear his voice.

"Please, don't leave me," she said, as he stood tall and took a step back, his hand holding hers between them.

"Take care of yourself," he told her, and with one last long look at her, as if he wanted to commit the image to memory, he let go of her hand, turning around and opening the door, Apparating away the next second.

She stared at the spot he had vacated, her body seemingly glued to the floor, unable to believe what was happening, unwilling to even imagine the possibility of him not returning to her, of being told he was dead, killed while trying to help the Order end the war. He had already given up so much, sacrificed his health, his life so many times for them, and yet he had to do it again. Not only that; she knew that, if he managed to survive this time, he would find himself in the same situation soon after. The war had to end; Voldemort had to be killed soon. It couldn't wait any longer, they had to do something; she had to do something. The defeat of the Dark Lord was the only thing that would grant Severus the freedom he so deserved, and she would see to it in any way that she could, no matter what it could cost her.

She wasn't sure how long she stood there, staring into space, lost in thought, but apparently it had been long enough for her parents to come looking for her.

"Hermione, is everything all right?" her mother asked softly from behind her and she nodded, blinking back the tears that threatened to fall and taking a deep, calming breath before turning around, a fake, unconcerned smile firmly set on her lips.

"Of course," she said, taking a moment to close the door before walking back into the kitchen and sitting at the table.

"Are you sure, you are fine, dear? You look a little pale," her mother said, pouring some more tea into her half filled cup. Sometimes she wondered if her mother really thought tea was the answer to every problem.

"The house looks nice," she said instead, taking a moment to look around.

"It is, and the views are incredible."

"I noticed," she agreed, taking another sip. "I don't imagine you go out much, though."

"Oh, no. Severus asked us to remain inside the house at all times. He said leaving would be dangerous."

"Severus," she repeated in a low voice.

"He is a good man, but you already know that," her mother said with a smile. "Although I must say, he is not a very social person. Of all the times he has been here, this is the first one he has stayed over for tea."

"Even though your mother asked rather insistently quite a few times," her father said in a serious tone although she knew he was teasing. He was a quiet man, and didn't understand her mother's need to socialize with everyone she met.

"He has come here often?" she asked, intrigued, cutting her mother's retort.

"Maybe three, four times a week; mainly to make sure we are all right and ask if there is anything we need."

"We had one of those little creatures when we got here…Home Elves I believe he called them," her mother told her.

"House Elves."

"Right, House Elves. But it only stayed here a few days. Having nothing to do made me nervous, and you know I like cleaning, it relaxes me, and so there was no need to have the poor thing working here, if I could do it myself."

"Right," she agreed, with a smile.

"So, since the Elf wasn't here anymore, Severus started coming more often, to make sure we had everything we needed. Pity you couldn't come with him."

"Yes, I wish I could come more often," she said truthfully.

"Well, you are here now, so why don't you tell us what has been keeping you so busy?"

She remained in silence for a few moments, thinking. Her parents were bound to ask questions, she knew, and she wasn't sure she could answer most of them, even if she wanted to. But the only other option was leaving, and although she felt she should go back to headquarters as soon as possible, to wait for news on Severus, she also knew that would mean Harry and Ron, and even more questions. She was tired of all the secrets, of all the lies, but she wasn't ready to tell the truth yet.

"Not much to tell, really. Actually, I'm rather hungry, and I've missed your cooking more than you can imagine, mum."

"You're staying for lunch?" her mother asked excitedly, and she nodded. "Well, let's get to it then, what would you like to eat?"

The hours went by so fast she was surprised when she glanced at the clock. She had managed to stray the conversation away from delicate subjects, and had enjoyed lunch with her parents immensely, but she knew it was time to go, even if she dreaded leaving. It took almost half an hour to say goodbye to her parents and assure them she would be back as soon as she could, but finally she took the Portkey Severus had created for her and activated it, appearing a few feet from the Order's headquarters.

With a resigned sigh she opened the door and stepped inside.

All was calm in the house, and she guessed they hadn't received any news from Severus; she wasn't sure whether that was good or bad.

She walked down the hallway, stopping by the kitchen first and then the library, not finding anyone in them. The sun was still high up in the sky, the early afternoon warm and clear, so she walked to the further door and opened it, a mixture of voices reaching her ears as soon as she stepped into the small garden in the back of the building.

"Hermione, dear," Molly was the first to notice she was there. "Where have you been? You missed lunch, would you like me to make you something?"

"No thank you, I already ate."

"Didn't Severus come with you?" Kingsley asked from the chair beside Molly.

"No, he had things to do," she replied, uncomfortable under his gaze.

"Hermione, you're back," Harry said from behind her, his tone serious as he walked towards her, Ron only a few steps behind. "Are you feeling better?"

"Yes, thank you."

"Feeling better? Did something happen to you?"

"No, Molly, nothing happened. I am all right." What was with all the questioning?

"Where's Snape?" Harry asked, in the same tone, and she saw Molly frown, slightly surprised.

"He's not here."

"Why don't we go inside for a moment?" he said next, turning around and walking back into the house without waiting for her to reply.

After hesitating for a moment she followed him, Ron close behind her, closing the door once they stepped inside.

"What's going on?" she asked as they walked.

"Not here," Ron said. "The rest of the Order should arrive any minute for a meeting, it would be best if we were not interrupted."

She wanted to ask what was going on, why all the secrecy, but she already knew the answer to that, so she simply followed them up the stairs and into the bedroom they shared. She waited until she heard the door click closed behind her before speaking.

"What's this about?"

"Well, what do you think?" Harry replied, his tone colder than before.

"If you want to talk then talk," she said briskly, sitting on the closest bed. "Come on, what is it?" she insisted, when he hesitated.

"Snape."

"What about him?"

"That's what we want to know. What's going on between you and Snape?"

"We worked together before I lost my memory, but you already know that."

"I thought it was the ferret you had been working with," said Ron.

"Both."

"That still doesn't answer my question; what is going on between you two?"

"I don't know what you mean."

"We've been friends for years, Hermione. During the last few months you have lied to us, constantly, and still we trust you. I think we are entitled to some answers."

"Professor Snape has helped me on numerous occasions, and has saved my life more than once. He has been working with the Order for years, risking his life to give us information. I admire him, and try to help him with whatever I can."

"I was there this morning; when you and Kingsley were trying to heal him, remember? I saw the way you acted with him."

"We all did," Ron added.

"The way I acted? He was dying, and I was just trying to save him."

"Don't treat me like an idiot, Hermione; we both know that's not true."

"Do we now?"

"Tell us what is going on."

"All right," she said with a sigh. She couldn't tell them the truth, but she knew she had to say something, and there wasn't much to choose from. "There is nothing going on between Professor Snape and me," she repeated sternly, but stopped them when they tried to interrupt. "I wish you would just believe me on this, but I see you won't. During the time I spent with Professor Snape my…feelings towards him might have changed slightly," she said, blushing slightly.

"What?" both Ron and Harry asked in unison.

"Well," she said, nervously; she couldn't believe she was discussing this with them. "I have always admired him, he is an intelligent and powerful wizard, but having spent more time around him I…"

"You like him?" Ron asked, his eyes wide open with disbelief.

"No, I… I don't know what it is," she sighed, inwardly glad they were not questioning the truth in her words, only her sanity. "It's nothing, really, just, I don't know, misplaced feelings of some sort. I hadn't even realized myself until this morning."

"You cannot be serious. Snape?"

"Well, I am, Harry. I don't see why you are so shocked."

"It's Snape, Hermione," said Ron, as if he were explaining to a child that the sky was blue. "Snape, the bat of the dungeons; the git that has made our lives a living hell ever since we met him."

"I know who he is, Ronald," she said briskly. "He is not that bad, you know?"

"Not that bad? I think all the spells and potions have messed up your brain."

"There's no need for all of this," she said, standing. "It's silly really, and I'm sure it won't last long. But you cannot tell him, please," she said urgently. "If he knew, he would use it to torture me for years."

"He probably wouldn't believe it if we told him," Harry said, still looking at her as if she were crazy. "But he was acting strange around you."

"He was?" she asked, feigning ignorance.

"The way he acted, when you were hurt."

"Well, I was almost burned alive," she said, throwing Ron a meaningful look, and saw him gulp and look away. "He was just trying to help me. He probably knew healing me would cause him less trouble than explaining the Order what had happened."

"About that," Ron said, apparently willing to drop the main subject. She hoped her explanation would keep them quiet, at least for the time being. "I'm really sorry for what happened. I never meant…"

"I know, Ron," she interrupted. "But you knew it was a dangerous curse, and …" She suddenly stiffened, her eyes darting to the door for a second.

"Hermione?"

"Did you hear that?" she asked in a whisper, all senses alert as she walked to the door and threw it open.

"Arthur, Kingsley, somebody come here!" she heard Molly scream from down the stairs. "Please, someone call a Healer!"

Feeling her heart beating wildly in her chest she started running down the hallway towards the stairs, only one thought in her mind. Severus.


	52. the spy

With one last look at Hermione, Severus Apparated away to see the Dark Lord, leaving her behind, with her parents

With one last look at Hermione, Severus Apparated away to see the Dark Lord, leaving her behind with her parents and hoping she would be safe. He wondered what would happen to him, and was surprised to realize the main reason why he even cared was because he wanted to see her again. He wasn't sure how it had happened, or even when, but his feelings for her were deeper than anything he had ever known before, and all he could think about lately was that little witch. No one had ever cared about him as much as she did, no one had treated him, looked at him or trusted him like she did, and for once in his life he could see a glimpse of a possibility, of another life for him. He only hoped he would live long enough to see it happen.

He Apparated a few yards away from the seemingly abandoned factory that hid the Dark Lord's headquarters, and took a moment to get ready before going in. Looking around to make sure no one else was there he waved his wand at himself, slashing his robes and skin open on several places before moving on to his face, splitting his lip and bruising his cheek. He wasn't sure yet of exactly what he would say or do, but he knew it would have to be believable if he wanted it to work.

Faking a slight limp, he slowly moved to the main entrance, the Dark Mark on his forearm granting him entry without lowering the wards.

He instantly sensed something was off, but still he walked inside, his eyes searching every room as he walked, never once seeing or hearing anyone until he reached the very last room.

Wormtail started shaking and cowered against the wall when he heard Severus' footsteps, and relaxed only slightly when he saw who it was. The wizard looked much paler than usual, and Severus could see a dried trail of tears down his cheeks and dried blood covering one side of his head. When he moved, Severus noticed the silver hand Voldemort had given the wizard was gone, the sleeve covered in blood as it fell from the wound in his arm, forming a quickly growing puddle where he sat.

"Severus, where have you been?" Wormtail spat angrily, although the effect was lost due to his quivering voice. "The Dark Lord has been waiting for you for hours."

"That is none of your business," Severus replied coldly, standing tall and throwing him a hateful look. "What's happened here? Where is everyone?"

"They've run away, while they still could. The Dark Lord is not happy; he killed five Death Eaters for standing in his way while he was walking back to his quarters. He wants to see you, Severus, and I have the feeling you will share their luck."

"Not all of us are disposable, Wormtail, you should have learnt that by now," he said, although he knew the wizard was probably right. "Is he in his quarters?" he asked, and Wormtail nodded, cringing in pain at the sudden movement.

With one last, disdainful look at the wizard, Severus turned around, heading out of the room, but before he reached the door a high pitched, pleading voice stopped him.

"Where are you going?"

"The Dark Lord wants to see me, you said it yourself."

"But won't…won't you heal me first?"

"Why would I do that?" he asked, not even turning around.

"Severus, please, at least stop the bleeding; I cannot use my wand to do it myself."

"If the Dark Lord did that to you, then you probably deserve it," he replied coldly.

"He will kill you," Wormtail yelled after him as he finally left the room and walked down the hallway, "and I will be here to celebrate when it happens."

Once more, Severus knew he was probably right; men like Wormtail, if he could be called a man, had a knack for survival. But then again, so did he.

As he moved closer to the Dark Lord's quarters he could feel the anger in the very air around him, the magic dense even outside, and he took a moment to steel himself, to close his mind before reaching for the door knob.

The door opened before he had even touched it, and he hesitantly stepped inside. One look in Voldemort's direction was enough to tell him his situation was much worse than he had thought.

Bracing himself for what was to come, Severus turned to close the door behind him, but before he could do it a silent curse hit him on the back, throwing him painfully hard against the door frame.

"Where have you been?" Voldemort's voice thundered behind him as he scrambled to turn around and get up again. "My instructions were clear and simple. You were to go to the place I indicated, see if an object still remained where it should and then return," he raged, a small flick of his wand throwing Severus across the room and against the opposite wall as soon as he had managed to stand. "It was a simple task, Severus," Voldemort continued, pacing the room in front of him as Severus tried to ignore the pain and stand once more. He could feel the magic in the air around him, thicker as the minutes passed. "Still, it took you hours to return. What happened?" he asked, turning to him.

"I encountered unexpected company, Master," Severus said, trying to remain calm even as he saw Voldemort's features contort with rage.

"The object," Voldemort hissed, his voice now so low and dangerous it sent shivers down Severus' spine. "Was it still there?"

"No, Master. Someone had…"

"No!" Voldemort raged before Severus could finish, another wave of his hand lifting him up in the air, higher and higher until his back hit the ceiling, "Crucio!" Voldemort yelled next, making Severus arch in pain, high up in the air. He could feel the blood boiling in his veins, his limbs twisting painfully as he lost control of his body.

His head felt as if it was about to explode, his own screams of pain deafening him, a trail of blood falling from his nose and mouth to the floor beneath him.

"Master, please," he managed to croak just as he was about to black out and Voldemort lifted the curse, lowering his hand and letting Severus' body fall back down, the loud sound of bones breaking renting the sudden silence of the room as he hit the floor.

"I want to know what happened," Voldemort said, his voice now eerily calm.

It took Severus a few moments to regain control of his body, his legs still shaking badly and his vision blurred. He was still weak from the curse that had almost killed him only hours before, and he wasn't sure how much more his body would take.

"I went there like you sent me, Master," he said, without even attempting to get up. He had no idea how many bones the fall had broken, but he could tell they were more than just a few. "I followed the trail of magic, like you had instructed, and found the place, but as soon as I entered I realized something was wrong," he explained slowly, wanting to have enough time to recover before being cursed again.

"What?" Voldemort said, urging him to continue. Severus coughed a few times, tasting the blood in his mouth and wondered how serious the internal damage was.

"The Inferi that were there, Master," he said, another fit of cough stopping him from continuing. With an exasperated sigh Voldemort waved his hand at him, and Severus felt part of the pain go away.

"Speak," Voldemort hissed, the threat clear in his tone.

"They had been bound, some even slain. It looked like what Rabastan had described before you sent me on the mission."

"Was there anyone else there?"

"No, Master."

"And the object?" Voldemort asked, and Severus shook his head.

"Whatever it was, it had been removed."

Voldemort stepped closer to him, a flick of his hand forcing Severus to his feet, the magic the only thing preventing him from collapsing on the floor again.

"Tell me exactly what you saw," Voldemort hissed, his eyes flashing red his gaze locked with Severus'.

"The room was dark when I entered, but I instantly noticed the figures lying on the floor. I used a few spells to see if there was anyone alive in there, but there wasn't; only then did I realize all the figures were Inferi," he lied. "When I lit the room I saw part of the stone wall was missing, and the niche where you said I would find the object was empty. I assumed…"

"This is useless," Voldemort hissed, reaching forwards and yanking Severus closer to him by the neck of his robes. "Do you see that?" he hissed, forcibly turning Severus around, so he was facing the other side of the room; three bodies he hadn't noticed before were lying there. There was blood everywhere, and he noticed some limbs lying a few feet from the bodies.

"Yes, my Lord," he replied, keeping his voice firm. He couldn't show weakness.

"They were sent on missions much like yours; seemingly simple tasks set to supposedly worthy Death Eaters. They were sent to different places, to make sure certain objects remained in place. Their news was similar to yours, Severus, and you can see what happened to them," Voldemort hissed by his ear, moving closer to the bodies so that Severus could have a better look. "Now, you have been a faithful Death Eater for years, and have served me well; I would hate for you to share their fate. Tell me something useful, or you will leave me no other choice," he threatened, finally letting go of Severus, who fell to the floor once more.

"There was not much I could do there, since they were already gone, but…"

"But you clearly could do something; it is obvious from the wounds you had when you entered here that you did more than see the object was missing and leave. What happened?"

"It was evident from the state the Inferi were in that whoever had taken the object had left shortly before I arrived, so I followed them. They had performed powerful magic against the Inferi, and I managed to track it. They had left through the woods and…"

"Crucio!" Voldemort suddenly yelled, catching Severus unaware. His pained screams broke the silence again as he arched off the floor. He was too weak, his body too hurt to take any more, and after a few moments he welcomed unconsciousness.

The sudden peace barely lasted a few seconds.

The pain returned with a vengeance when Voldemort awoke him again. The spell he had used to lessen Severus' pain had been broken by the Cruciatus Curse, and now he was even finding it hard to breathe.

"Do not test my patience, Severus," Voldemort hissed, towering over him. "Tell me what happened. I don't want the details, only the main facts."

"I am sorry, Master," Severus said, his voice hoarse from screaming. "It took me a few hours, but I finally managed to find them."

"Who?"

"The Order. Only a few of them, those in the higher ranks. That is probably the reason why I wasn't informed; for whatever reason, they kept it a well guarded secret."

"Did they see you?"

"No. I was masked."

"How did they know where to find it?" he hissed, his voice even lower than before as the air around them crackled.

"They saw me before I could find out, that is why I was wounded when I arrived. They attacked me."

"And still they didn't find out who you were?"

"No, Master. I stunned three and cursed another one, but they were too many, and I couldn't fight them all."

"How did you escape?"

"I had created a Portkey before following them, just in case. I activated it as soon as it was clear I couldn't defeat them."

"If you found them; if you followed them and even got close enough to hear them speak, why couldn't you retrieve the object I sent you after?"

"I don't know what that object was, but I heard them speaking about it. It was sent to Potter as soon as they retrieved it, and I gathered from what they said that it had already been destroyed," he said, his eyes fixed on Voldemort, expecting him to attack again. He wasn't mistaken.

Not bothering with the Cruciatus again, Voldemort waved his hand in Severus' direction, and he found himself lifted from the floor and thrown against the wall. He could see the rage in Voldemort's eyes as he walked closer to him.

"I do not accept failure," he hissed, with another wave of his wand, and Severus screamed again, feeling his skin burn, although there was no fire. "I expected better from you," he continued, and the burning stopped, replaced by deep cuts across his chest and arms. He could feel the blood pouring from the wounds and didn't want to look down at the floor, knowing he would only see red.

"I'm sorry, Master," he managed to groan before Voldemort's cold hand wrapped around his neck, chocking him.

"Sorry is not enough," he hissed, tightening his hold on him.

"Master, please," Severus said, with the little air he had left in his lungs. "I know… I know who…"

"What?" Voldemort hissed, curious enough to loosen his hold slightly, allowing him to take a small breath.

"I know who…" He started coughing again before he managed to finish, his entire body shaking from the force of it.

"Speak!" Voldemort yelled angrily, his eyes flashing crimson as he flicked his fingers, another long, deep slash cutting across Severus' chest.

"I know who the spy is," he said, his head light from all the blood loss and the lack of air.

A hint of curiosity crossed Voldemort's angered expression, and he lowered his hand again and stepped back, watching Severus collapse on the floor face down.

"Who?" he asked, his voice resounding all through the room.

Gathering all the strength he had left Severus moved his hands to either side of his chest and pushed himself up slightly, tilting his head up so he could see Voldemort in the eyes. He knew it was the only way he would survive, and he had to be believable. Taking a deep breath that caused another fit of cough he licked his dried lips and closed his mind tightly from any unwanted exploration. Hoping his voice would sound firm enough he licked his lips once more and spoke.

"Draco Malfoy."


	53. proof

As soon as the words left his lips, Severus knew he had a chance

"Draco Malfoy."

As soon as the words left his lips, Severus knew he had a chance. Rage and confusion mixed in Voldemort's expression, but that rage was no longer directed at him.

"That is not possible," Voldemort hissed, taking another step back. "There is no way he could have known…"

"Perhaps he found…" Severus started, but again cough overtook him and he couldn't speak. He felt the metallic taste on blood in his mouth, and once more he wondered just how badly hurt he was. His arms shook beneath his body, not strong enough to support him, but he refused to collapse again. His gaze was locked with Voldemort's, and he wouldn't look away.

With an exasperated sigh, Voldemort waved his hand once more, and instead of the pain Severus had been expecting, he felt relief. He carefully rose to his knees, but knew better than to stand up, not only because it might give the wrong impression, but also because he knew Voldemort had only taken the pain away; he had not been healed.

"What makes you think it is he?" Voldemort questioned, but at the same time took a step back, giving Severus some more room; he knew it was a sign that he was, at least, willing to hear his story, and he took the opportunity.

"He was with them, Master. He was with the Order when I found them."

Anger flashed through Voldemort's eyes again, but he didn't speak, so Severus continued.

"I believe he has been spying for the Order for some time now."

"You are my spy, Severus, how could you not have known this until now?"

"I have not been with them long enough to regain their absolute trust, my Lord. They are still reticent to trust me with their most important secrets. I imagine Draco somehow found a way to them."

"How could you not have known?" Voldemort hissed, angrily.

"I believe he might be the reason why the Order seemed to be always one step ahead of us, Master. They found out where our headquarters were, that we were targeting its members' Muggle families..."

"Draco didn't know most of those things."

"Perhaps not directly, Master, but there are other ways."

"What are you implying, Severus, that there is more than just one spy among my army?"

"No, my Lord. But many of your Death Eaters discuss information related to their meetings with you and their missions at headquarters. Perhaps the boy has been hearing more than he should have."

"You said Bellatrix had been captured, and that Narcissa had been killed during that same attack. The Malfoys are an ancient family that takes care of their own above everything else. If he were the spy, he would never have let his mother die. What you are saying makes no sense."

He could feel he was losing, that Voldemort doubted his words, and he had to convince him. The more questions he asked, the harder the lie would be to maintain.

"I was told Narcissa was dead, but I did not see her body," he said, and hid the small smile that threatened to reach his lips when he saw Voldemort turn back to him, his eyes locked with Severus, contemplative.

"If he had betrayed me, Bellatrix would have found out and informed me immediately," Voldemort said, although he did not sound as certain as before.

"Not if she didn't know. Perhaps she found out, and Draco had to resort to desperate actions. That would explain a seemingly pointless attack to a small group of Death Eaters by enough Order members to kill most and take prisoners without any loses for them."

At Voldemort's expression, Severus felt some of his hopes return. He was fleshing out the story as he spoke, but years of lying gave him the ability to do it good enough to perhaps deceive Voldemort himself once again.

"Still, no one but myself knew of the location of those objects," he said thoughtfully.

"It would seem someone else did as well, and I believe the person that Rabastan spoke of and the one that went with the Order to the place you sent me were the same."

After a few moments of silence, Voldemort stepped closer to Severus again, the expression on his face unreadable.

"Those are easy accusations to make, with no one to respond to them."

It was now or never, he knew, and so he said the only possible thing at the moment.

"I will prove it to you, Master. I will bring Draco here."

"You will bring the boy to me?" he asked, and Severus nodded. "I asked you to bring him before, and you said you did not know where he was. My other Death Eaters cannot find him or Lucius. If he really is working for the Order, as you say, what makes you think you can, not only find him, but also bring him before the wizard he betrayed?"

"I will find him, my Lord. I will let you hear of his betrayal from his own lips."

"Very well," Voldemort agreed after a few moments. "You have two hours. Do not disappoint me, Severus, or I will be forced to reconsider your punishment for not fulfilling your mission earlier," he hissed threateningly, his red eyes flicking to the dismembered bodies lying a few feet from Severus for a moment.

"Yes, Master," he said, slowly reaching for his wand and performing a few basic healing charms before carefully getting up and making his way to the door. He would take care of the other wounds once he was out of there.

"Send Wormtail in," Voldemort called after him, as he left the room, and he did as told, finding the pale, trembling wizard in the same spot he had been when he had last seen him and sneering down at him when he gasped in shock at seeing Severus still alive.

"The Dark Lord wishes to speak to you," he hissed before turning around and walking down the hallway and towards the exit, smirking to himself at the sound of the wizard's pleas for help. Whatever the man got, it was less than he deserved.

Taking a deep breath, Severus tightened his hold on the wand and focused on the house in Plymouth where he had left Draco. Closing his eyes, he Apparated away, feeling the wounds reopen as he did, collapsing on the floor the second his feet touched the ground.

"Who's there? Hermione?" he heard Draco call, the voice sounding far away. At least he knew he had managed to Apparate to the right place.

With a groan, he pushed himself upwards as best he could, his arms still not strong enough to support his weight, but he finally managed to turn around and sit.

"Merlin," he heard the boy gasp as he turned on the lights. "Severus? What's happened?" he asked, his voice closer now, although Severus couldn't see him, his eyes still trying to adjust to the sudden brightness. "Is my mother all right? Hermione?"

"They're fine," he snarled, wanting Draco to shut up. His head felt as if it was about to explode, and the boy wasn't helping.

With a loud, pained groan, Severus reached for his wand, which had fallen by his side after he had Apparated, and repeated the basic healing spells he had used before.

"What are you looking at, boy?" he snarled, while healing the superficial wounds.

"I'm just trying to decide whether I should offer to help you or finished what I can only assume the Dark Lord started. My life would probably be easier without you in it."

Severus lifted his head to look at him, glaring even as he told himself he shouldn't be surprised by the boy's words in the least. If he had been in Draco's position, he probably wouldn't have given it much thought; he would have gone for the kill. Draco would probably be safer with him dead.

Still, Severus tightened his hold on the wand at hearing the boy's words, ready to defend himself if it came to that, when Draco stepped closer to him and reached out to help him stand.

A part of him wanted to refuse his help, wanted to tell Draco he would be better off killing him, but there was nothing to be gained by it, so he took the help offered and let the boy walk him to a chair.

"Do you have potions here?" he asked, his hand flying to his side as he felt what could only be a broken rib pinch the flesh, as if trying to break through it.

"Yes, what do you need?"

"I will need a Blood Replenishing potion, another for the internal wounds, and a few to mend the broken bones."

"One for the pain too, I'd say," Draco added, when he saw him lean back and wince in pain again.

"Do you have all that here?"

"Yes. My father made sure we would have everything we could need in a situation such as this," he said, walking out of the room and returning only a few minutes later, with a few vials on each hand.

Taking the first potion from the boy's hand, Severus lifted his wand and waved it over the vial, carefully checking its contents before drinking them down.

"There is no need for that," Draco said, as he handed Severus the second vial. "If I wanted you dead, why bother with poison? The state you are in, it would probably take only a few minor curses to kill you."

He took a moment to look at Draco, but did not respond. Instead, he checked the contents of the other vials before drinking them as well, the pain turning into a slight discomfort as he felt them work quickly, the bones snapping back into place and the organs healing.

"What's happened?" Draco asked again, after Severus had taken the last one.

"The Dark Lord found out the cup had been taken."

"The one I gave Hermione?" he asked, and Severus nodded. "Does he know it was me?"

"He suspects it," he said, knowing he couldn't tell Draco the truth.

"So what will happen now?" he asked, a hint of fear in his voice.

"I have to take you to him."

"What? No," Draco gasped, shaking his head vehemently as he took a step back. "I can't go back, you said it yourself. He will kill me."

"If I don't take you to him, he will kill me, and then he will find you and kill you as well."

"So you're saying I'm doomed, and you want me to go to him only so you will survive? That is crazy, why would I do that?" he asked angrily.

"This isn't about you, or about me."

"I won't let you do it," Draco said, still shaking his head and taking another step away from him, as if readying himself to run. "I won't let you use me as some sort of…of sacrificial lamb, only to save yourself. You betrayed him long before I did; you have been spying for the Order for years, why do I have to die so you can live?" he asked, desperation clear in his voice.

"What did you expect would happen, Draco?" he asked angrily, rising from the chair and walking to him. "Did you think he would never find out? Did you think he was a fool, that he would never suspect you? You might not know what the cup you took was, but you knew it was important. Did you think he would just let it lie, that he would forget it had been stolen?"

"Why would he suspect me? I didn't even know the thing existed until Hermione told me about it…why would he ever think I had anything to do with it?"

"You suddenly went missing, boy," he snarled. "You didn't even answer his summons. Your mother and father disappeared too. Did you honestly think he would not link those facts together, and reach the obvious conclusion? Even if he had had no idea the cup had been stolen, he would have, at the very least, suspected betrayal."

"That doesn't make any sense," Draco muttered, and then his eyes narrowed as he glanced at Severus, a look of suspicion on his face that made him tense and tighten his hold on his wand.

"If this is all about me, then why did he hurt you? By the way you looked when you arrived here; I would say you were a curse away from being killed. Why did he do that to you?"

"That is none of your business. I am here to discuss other matters."

Severus kept a calm façade, his voice firm, his expression calm, even as Draco took a step closer, his eyes still searching his face with suspicion until a look of sudden understanding changed his features.

"You sold me out, didn't you?" he asked angrily. "You did something to upset him, and then sold me out to save yourself."

If Severus hadn't been expecting it, Draco might have stood a chance, but he had seen in the boy's face that he was ready to attack, and as soon as he lifted his arm, Severus flicked his wand, wordlessly disarming him.

"I did what I had to do," Severus hissed, watching Draco struggle against the invisible magic preventing him to move, "You are right, boy, I have been doing this for far longer than you, and I did what I have always done, whatever it takes to protect my position amongst the Death Eaters. Without a spy in the enemy's ranks, the Order doesn't stand a chance. But you have one thing wrong," he said, his gaze locked with Draco's, wanting him to see the truth in his words. "I did not do it to save myself; I did it because the war has to end, and the Order will never have another spy as close to the Dark Lord as I am."

"You are just making up excuses; you should at least have the courage to face the truth," he yelled.

"The position you are now in," Severus said, ignoring his comment, "is one you got yourself into. You let your aunt trick you into spying for her, and then betrayed the Dark Lord over a silly crush. You have done this to yourself, so do not try to blame it on me."

"It's not a silly crush," Draco hissed, and Severus knew the boy was about to say more, to speak words of love he had fooled himself into believing, but he thankfully held back. Instead, his expression turned calm and his struggling ceased as a calculating look took over his features. "You told my mother you would help me, and I know you said the same thing to Hermione, or she would never have helped you find me. The Order knows I am willing to help them, and they want me to. What will they do when they find out what you did? What will Hermione think of you, if you take me to the Dark Lord, if you let him kill me? And don't try to fool me; I know you care about her, about what she thinks of you, more than you are willing to admit."

"I do not owe anyone any explanations. I have found myself in far worse situations, boy," he snarled, "Do you honestly think your death would affect my work in the least?"

"I didn't kill you, not when I found you in the cabin, and not here, when you arrived. I trusted your word when you said you would help me; I even gave you the potions you needed, helped you heal. Is this how you repay me, by taking me to my death?"

"I have nothing to repay you for," Severus said just as calmly, although he saw the truth in Draco's words, "and I said I came here to take you to the Dark Lord, not to your death."

"What are you talking about? If you take me to him he will kill me."

"How willing are you to trust me?" Severus asked, freeing Draco from the magical bindings with a flick of his wand.

"Trust you? With what?" he asked, confused.

"With your very life. Will you trust me?"

"Why should I?"

"Because there is no need for you to die tonight."

"I don't understand," Draco said, in a low voice.

"I cannot guarantee anything, but if you do as I say, then I might be able to save your life. Will you trust me?" he asked again.

Draco looked at him silently for a few moments, his expression unreadable as he tried to make a decision.

For a moment, Severus feared the boy would refuse, and knew that, if he did, he would be forced to take extreme measures. The choice was between modifying his memories, which would be a great risk to himself once he took him to the Dark Lord, or kill the boy himself, right then and there, and tell Voldemort Draco had put up a fight and he had had no other option.

Unwilling to do either until he was certain there was no other way, he waited, his eyes set on the boy, ready to stop him if he tried something as foolish as attacking him or escaping. Minutes passed in silence, but finally Draco spoke.

"Yes," he said, his voice hesitant, barely above a whisper.

"Good," Severus replied and walked towards the entrance. "Come now, there is not much time."

"For what?"

"Trust me, boy, the least you know, the better."


	54. Legilimens

"Severus," Voldemort hissed, as soon as he reached the open door to his study

"Severus," Voldemort hissed, as soon as he reached the open door to his study.

"Master," Severus replied, with a respectful bow.

"I believe I gave you two hours to return, and it has been over three."

"I know, my Lord, but the mission took longer than expected."

"I certainly do hope you succeeded; you know what will happen otherwise," he said, menacingly.

"I did, Master," Severus said, waving his wand and floating an unconscious Draco into the room.

"Excellent; now I shall know the truth," Voldemort said, his eyes flashing with glee. "Wormtail, leave us," he hissed, and only then did Severus notice the wizard was in the room with them.

He was lying on the floor by the fire, his arm still bleeding, although not as profusely as before, and the burns Severus had noticed before looked much worse now. By the look of him, he was much more hurt than it seemed at first sight.

"Y-Yes, Master," Wormtail replied in a weak, trembling tone as he struggled to sit up, but collapsed on his back again before he could steady himself.

"I said leave," Voldemort said angrily, waving his hand at the wizard and sending him flying to the door, his body hitting the wall as he reached the hallway. "Severus," he said, when he noticed his eyes were still on the small wizard.

"Yes, my Lord?" he replied, turning to Voldemort.

"Close the door," he said, glancing at Wormtail's unconscious, battered body.

"Yes, Master," he repeated, hesitating for a second, wondering if perhaps he should heal Wormtail, and then deciding against it.

As soon as the door was closed again, Voldemort turned his back on Severus, facing the wall, and with a wave of his hand all the furniture on the far end of the room vanished, leaving the wall bare, and the floor empty.

"Bring him closer," he hissed, not turning to him, and Severus did as told, levitating Draco before him and walking to where Voldemort stood.

With yet another flick of his hand, Voldemort moved Draco in front of him and lifted him almost to the ceiling.

"Wake him," he hissed, and as soon as Draco opened his eyes Voldemort let him fall.

Severus could see the look of fear mix with that of pain on Draco's face, but there was nothing he could do for him. Whatever Voldemort decided to do, he could only follow his lead and hope he would be able to save the boy's life in the end.

Convincing Draco to go to Voldemort's headquarters with him hadn't been easy. Although Severus had told him he would try to protect him, they both knew his chances of surviving were slim at best. He could only hope the boy was strong, that he would resist long enough; he was about to suffer more than he ever had.

"You," Voldemort said in a voice so low and menacing it made Draco shiver in fear. "You contacted the Order of the Phoenix."

Draco didn't answer. Instead, he tried to stand, although by what Severus could see, he had hurt one of his legs when he had fallen.

"Speak!" Voldemort yelled, throwing Draco against the wall with a wave of his hand, but still the boy said nothing. "You have betrayed your Master; you have betrayed everything your family believed in. You have allied yourself with filthy Mudbloods, half-breeds, and blood traitors. You have helped those disgusting Muggle-lovers. You are a shame to your blood, to the Malfoy name. You are a shame to the Wizarding world."

Draco stood up again. There wasn't any defiance in his expression, buy it was still obvious in the way he stood. He didn't meet Voldemort's gaze, nor did he meet Severus', but he held his head high all the same.

"Speak!" Voldemort yelled again. "Defend yourself against the accusations or admit your betrayal."

Still, the boy didn't say a word.

"Crucio!" Voldemort said angrily, glee crossing his features again as he saw Draco fall to the floor, screaming in pain as his body writhed and shook.

"Are you a spy for the Order of the Phoenix?" Voldemort asked in a calm tone as soon as he lifted the curse.

Draco's breath was ragged, his arms still shaking as he slowly stood up again. Meeting Voldemort's gaze this time, he pressed his lips together, not emitting a single sound.

"I want to know the truth, boy, and I want to hear it from you. Did you help the Order take those objects from me?"

Severus could see the fear in Draco's eyes, and yet he did not reply.

"Legilimens!" Voldemort yelled, the power of the spell making Draco fall on his knees, although the eye contact was never broken.

"Let me see it!" Voldemort yelled frustrated after a moment, as he stepped closer.

Severus could see the deep frown on Draco's brow; the effort obvious as he tried to close his mind to Voldemort's prodding. Voldemort took another step towards him, waving his hand in Draco's direction so that he was lifted until their eyes were levelled. The power was again palpable in the air, but still Voldemort couldn't break into his mind.

"Severus," he said after a moment, releasing Draco and letting him fall again.

"Yes, Master," he said instantly, walking to him.

Instead of replying, Voldemort waved his hand towards the boy, his meaning clear to Severus without a need for words.

"Crucio," Severus said, his wand aimed at Draco, who started screaming once more. Voldemort wanted him to break the boy, to hurt him enough so that he could no longer keep him from prodding his mind.

After a few moments, Severus lifted the curse, watching Draco gasp for breath. Without giving him time to recover, he waved his wand again, sending him flying up and backwards until his back hit the wall, and then pinned him to it.

"Tell the truth, Draco. Admit what you have done, and you will die quickly," he said, his tone low and cold.

As before Draco remained silent, a hateful look on his face as he watched Severus. He didn't want to do it, but he didn't have another choice. Stepping closer to him, he fisted the boy's hair and yanked his head to the side.

"You brought this on to yourself," he hissed loudly, and with another flick of his wand Draco stated screaming again.

"That is not good enough," Voldemort said from behind him after a few moments, his voice just loud enough to be heard over the screams. "Do not hold back, Severus. You can do better than that."

"Yes, Master," he replied, using the same curse Voldemort had used on him only hours before to slash Draco's flesh open, the blood soon pooling on the floor beneath him.

"Are you ready to speak now?" he asked a moment later. "We know the truth, Draco. We know what you did. There is no reason to hide it. Tell the Dark Lord what he wants to hear, and your suffering will stop."

With visible effort, Draco raised his head, a determined look on his face as he kept silent, like he had since arriving.

"You are being a fool," Severus said. Another flick of his wand; another slash on the boy's skin. "Who do you think you are protecting?"

When he didn't reply, Severus took a step back, waving his wand once more. A small, green flame appeared before him, floating mere millimetres away from Draco's chest but not touching him.

"Did you think you wouldn't be discovered? Did you think we wouldn't know?" the flame moved forward and Draco screamed as it made contact with his robes, but they didn't catch fire. The flame retained its shape and size even when it burned through the clothes and touched his skin. After a few seconds, Severus moved it away again.

"You cannot keep secrets from the Dark Lord, you foolish child."

Severus gave Draco a few moments, but he said nothing.

"Do not fool yourself; you will break. It doesn't matter how long it takes, it will happen. Make things easier for yourself, tell the Dark Lord what he wishes to know, and it will be over."

Silence.

"Crucio!" he yelled again after a moment, and watched Draco's body convulse. When he lifted the curse, the boy's eyes closed and his body went limp.

"I think he is ready, Master," Severus said, turning towards Voldemort, who was comfortably sitting in a large armchair behind him.

"Very well," he replied, standing in one smooth motion and walking to Severus' side.

"Wake him."

"Rennervate," he said, and at the same time Voldemort hissed, "Legilimens!"

Draco's gaze locked with Voldemort's, and Severus instantly felt him break through the boy's mental barrier.

"Let me see it, show me what you have done," Voldemort hissed, taking a step closer to Draco.

Severus' gaze was locked on Draco, watching his eyes glaze over.

"How?" Voldemort muttered after a moment, and then turned to Severus, rage clear in his voice. "The witch?"

"Master?" Severus said, pretending not to understand what he was saying.

"The boy gained access to the Order through your witch, Severus. How could that happen?"

"I have no idea, Master. Perhaps it happened after I modified her memories?"

Instead of replying, Voldemort turned back to Draco, searching his mind for the answer.

"Well, it seems that little Mudblood has a thing for dark wizards. How could you not have known he had contacted her?" Voldemort asked, looking at him once more.

"I had to stay away from her, Master. I didn't want to risk her somehow remembering or suspecting she had been working for me, or I would have been forced to kill her."

"Which I had asked you to do from the beginning."

"Yes, Master, but that would have alerted the rest of the Order, and it would have endangered my position as a spy."

"You seem to worry a lot about not being discovered, given how much your work has been lacking as of late, but now is not the time to discuss that."

Turning to Draco again, Voldemort moved his hand, lifting the boy up in the air once more, and then moving him closer.

"How did you know about the objects?" he hissed.

Another minute passed in silence, Draco's skin paling as the blood kept dripping to the floor although he made no sound of pain. His face clearly showed the effort he was putting in fighting Voldemort's invasion, even as his eyes remained glazed, lost.

"Let me see it!" Voldemort hissed again, Draco's body shaking in response to his Master's rage.

"No, there's no way they could have known, you're lying!" he yelled after another minute, and Severus felt Voldemort break the connection with Draco's mind as he sent him flying back against the wall.

"Get up!" he yelled, when Draco fell to the floor in a heap, his eyes fierce with rage as he waited for the boy to stand.

Draco tried to get up, but it was clear he would never manage to do it on his own. His arms and legs were shaking in aftershocks from both the curses and the after-effects of such a violent mind invasion.

"I said up," Voldemort hissed after a moment, lifting his arm and forcing Draco to an upright position, his feet dangling a few inches above the floor.

"You allied yourself with the enemy, you provided not only information, but also objects they wished to use against me," Voldemort said, his voice now low, but still threatening.

Severus saw his Master's eyes flick red again as he began to close his hand in the air in front of him, Draco's hands instantly flying to his neck, trying to fight the invisible force strangling him.

"You were willing to help them destroy me?" he hissed after a moment. "You are worse than a coward, worse than a traitor. You are nothing but filth. What would your ancestors think if they knew this is what the Malfoy name has turned into, if they saw their last heir become a blood traitor over a filthy Mudblood?"

Draco's eyes were full of hatred when he met Voldemort's gaze, but still not a single word left his lips.

"What are they planning? I want you to tell me all you know. Everything."

Draco's eyes flicked to Severus' for a moment, and then back to Voldemort, a defiant look on his face taking over the evident fear he had been showing.

"Very well. If you do not wish to speak, then I will see it for myself. Legilimens!"

Again, the room fell silent as Voldemort searched Draco's mind for the answers the boy wouldn't give.

"Is there anyone else helping them? Do they have any other spies?" he asked, and after a moment spoke again, his tone low with rage. "Those treacherous half-breeds," he hissed. "I should never have trusted them, they are nothing but animals. They will be taken care of immediately. Now tell me what the Order is planning."

Severus could see the look of concentration on Voldemort as he fought all the barriers in Draco's mind to get to the information he wanted.

"A meeting?" the Dark Lord muttered after a moment. "When?" he asked, and Severus noticed Draco's nose and ears began to bleed at the force of the magic Voldemort was using.

"Five days? Very well," he said then, finally releasing Draco and watching him fall loudly. "It is time to end this nonsense. Severus?"

"Yes, Master."

"Did you know the boy had a meeting planned with your witch?"

"No, my Lord," he replied, his tone low, not wanting to anger Voldemort further.

"Apparently, Potter and that other boy will be there as well."

"I was not informed of that."

"Well, Draco here has informed me, although not willingly of course," he said, throwing Draco a nasty look as the boy raised his head to look at him, "that he believed no one else in the Order knew."

"Did you see what the reason for such a meeting is, Master?"

"Apparently it was the witch that organized it. Five days from now, Potter will leave the safety of the Order of the Phoenix's headquarters with no one but his two friends for company. Or perhaps a few older members as well…" he added thoughtfully.

"What do you want me to do, my Lord?" he asked.

"Find out who will be there, and organize the Death Eaters. We must be ready to attack. The time for games has passed; this war must come to an end."

"Yes, Master."

"As for you, boy," Voldemort hissed, turning back to Draco, who had been ineffectively trying to sit up, "you should know better than trying to betray the most powerful wizard of all times. You are nothing but a fool, and like a fool you shall die. Avada…"

"Master, if I may," Severus interrupted, before he could finish the curse, and Voldemort turned to him, rage clear in his voice when he spoke.

"What now?"

"As much as I believe the boy deserves to die for what he did, I think perhaps it would be better if he stayed alive for now."

"And why is that?"

"If he has been working for the Order, they will find it strange that he doesn't contact them again, and the girl will probably not go to the meeting if she doesn't hear from him until then."

"Surely, you can come up with a solution for that."

"Perhaps, Master, but if we want an attack on them to be surprising, successful and final, then it would be better if they suspected nothing."

"And what will happen if you return the boy to the Order?"

"I can modify his memories, make him forget everything that happened tonight, and then take him to the Order. Me saving their spy from something dangerous, perhaps some attack, will surely increase their trust in me, and will guarantee the meeting still takes place."

"Perhaps," Voldemort agreed, "but if they have the boy, why would they go somewhere else for a meeting with him five days from now?"

"I do not know the reasons for such meeting, Master, but I will make sure it still happens. I will modify his memories further if I have to, or discover the purpose of said meeting and find a way to make it happen. Five days from now, Potter will be away from headquarters and almost unprotected, unknowingly awaiting his death; I will make sure it is so, but for that, I will need Draco alive."

"Very well," Voldemort said after a few moments of silence. "Take him and leave."

"Thank you, Master," Severus said, bowing deeply before turning towards Draco. With a flick of his wand the boy was unconscious again, and Severus levitated him all the way to the entrance before taking his arm and Apparating them both to the Order's headquarters.


	55. insight

"Hermione?"

She barely heard Ron's voice, all her attention focused on the door, on the sounds she was sure she had heard coming from downstairs.

"Did you hear that?" she asked in a whisper, all senses alert as she walked to the door and threw it open.

"Arthur, Kingsley, somebody come here!" she heard Molly scream from down the stairs. "Please, someone call a Healer!"

She could hear the panic in Molly's voice, and she felt her heart beat wildly in response. If the witch was screaming in that way, it couldn't be good.

Without wasting a moment, she started running down the hallway towards the stairs, only one thought in her mind. Severus.

She distantly heard Ron and Harry call after her, but she couldn't pay them any attention; she had to follow Molly's voice, had to get to where she was. She had to know what was happening.

"Please, don't let it be Severus. Please, don't let it be him," she muttered under her breath as she ran, the stair seemingly growing longer with every step she took, the seconds feeling like hours.

The first thing she saw when she reached the landing was Molly, kneeling on the floor, bent over a figure lying in front of her. The man on the floor was wearing black robes, but that was all she could tell from where she was. She couldn't see his face.

She took a tentative step closer, needing to know if it was him, and at the same time afraid of what she might see, but before she could get close enough movement to her side caught her attention. She tilted her head to the side and froze.

It was as if the world around them had vanished, and nothing else mattered. There he was, alive and well, standing by the door, his eyes on her as she watched him. Relief suddenly flooded her body and she felt tears well up in her eyes as her heart began to slow down.

"Severus," she whispered, taking a few steps towards him, but before she could reach him Molly spoke.

"Hermione," she called, her voice still frantic, bringing Hermione back to reality. "Go get Kingsley, I need help."

"I'm here," Kingsley replied before she could move, his deep voice calm and firm as he walked over to Molly and the figure on the floor.

The relief at seeing Severus alive and well had made her momentarily forget about the man Molly had been trying to help, but now her eyes darted back to the figure. If it wasn't Severus, then who could it be?

"Hermione," she heard Severus mutter, his voice low, his tone tentative, but she didn't pay attention. As Molly moved to make room for Kingsley she had seen a glimpse of white blond hair.

She knew what she would see, knew who it was, but still she stepped towards him, close enough so that she could see him. As much as she had been inwardly preparing herself to what he might look like, a small gasp of surprise escaped her when she saw him. His face was cut and bloodied, his robes torn, his chest slashed open on several places, a large burn on the middle. His eyes were closed, and she wasn't even sure he was breathing.

Her gaze flicked to Severus for a second, saw a hint of guilt in his eyes, and then turned back to Draco, taking another step and kneeling by his side.

"How can I help?" she asked, but both Molly and Kingsley were too busy to pay her any mind.

"What happened to him?" Kingsley asked, turning to Severus.

"The Dark Lord found out he was helping the Order," he replied, and although she was still facing Draco, she could feel Severus' eyes on her, as if it was her he was explaining it to.

"I will need to know what…"

"I will bring the potions he needs," Severus interrupted him. "All you need to do is keep him alive until I return," he said firmly before turning around and leaving.

"What an arrogant…"

"There's no time for that," Molly interrupted Kingsley. "The boy needs our help."

"Well, we cannot help him here," he said, standing up. "Move back," he said, before flicking his wand over Draco, levitating his body and guiding him towards the small infirmary.

"I need to know what happened to him, in order to help him," Kingsley said, as soon as he had laid Draco on the bed. Taking a step back from him, he lifted his wand again and, with a complicated flick, murmured, "Legilimens."

Her eyes darted from Kingsley to Draco, watching the boy grow paler and the Auror's features contort in surprise first, and in anger seconds later. After a few moments he lowered his wand again and walked over to the small cupboard on the far wall, searching through the potions stored inside.

"The bastard," Hermione heard him mutter under his breath.

"What did you see?" she asked. "What happened to Draco?"

"Severus did this to him," he replied, and she gasped. "Why are you so surprised, Hermione?" he asked, turning to her. "Who do you think he is? What did you expect of him?" he asked angrily, walking back towards Draco and pouring some bluish potion over the burn on his chest.

"There must be a reason, he wouldn't…"

"He wouldn't what?" he snapped. She heard Molly gasp at his attitude, but the witch said nothing, and neither did Harry and Ron, who were standing by the door. "He is a Death Eater, Hermione. He may be helping the Order, but that doesn't change who he is; what he is."

She looked at Draco once more, unwilling to believe what Kingsley was saying. Severus had told her he would help Draco; why would he ever hurt him in such a way?

"You don't believe me, do you?" Kingsley asked her angrily. She had never seen him like this. He had always been kind to her; never once had he spoken to her in such a way. "I have done nothing but try to help you, have trusted you when I had no reasons to, and yet now you don't believe my words? You trust him more than you trust me?"

"It's not like that, Kingsley," she said in a pleading tone, but he didn't listen.

"Very well, see it for yourself then," he said in the same tone, lifting his wand and pointing it at her. She watched his lips move, but couldn't hear what he was saying.

Suddenly, the room around her vanished, the silence replaced by loud screams. She lifted her hands to her ears, trying to shut the sound out, but it didn't work. She closed her eyes for a moment, and when she opened them again a large stone wall had appeared in front of her.

The screams became louder, and she turned to the side to see Draco lying on the floor, his body shaking from pain caused by a curse she knew well enough. Another figure stepped closer, and she lifted her eyes to find Severus standing there, his wand aimed at Draco, a look of hatred on his face that made her shiver in fear.

She could see his lips moving, knew he was talking to Draco, but she couldn't hear his voice over the screams.

She blinked, and the scene in front of her changed again. Draco wasn't on the floor anymore, now he seemed to be bound to the wall, and Severus was standing in front of him, a strange, green flame floating between them. They both stood still for a moment, and she thought she had seen Severus' lips move again, but again, she could hear nothing.

Then Severus moved, and she watched wide eyed as with a flick of his wand, he made the flame reach Draco, burning his clothes first, and his flesh moments later, the pained screams deafening her.

"Stop it!" she heard someone yell from far, far away, and the next second the screaming had stopped, and the figures vanished.

She was kneeling on the floor of the infirmary, and although she could feel the pain on her knees she couldn't remember falling.

Molly was kneeling by her side, her hands cupping her face as she tried to calm her down. Blinking a few times, Hermione wiped the tears she hadn't realized were falling from her eyes as she tried to calm down.

"What did you do to her?" Harry asked, and she looked up at Kingsley. For a moment, she had forgotten it had been him who had caused the visions.

"I showed her what I saw in Draco's memories, showed her what had happened to him. Maybe now you will believe me," he said, the last part directed at her.

She wanted to reply, although she wasn't sure what she could have said, so she remained silent. A part of her wanted to defend Severus, to tell Kingsley that there had to be an explanation for what he had done, but the other part wasn't so certain.

"He has been trying to convince the Order to find and kill Draco for days," Kingsley said, his voice calm and soft again as he stepped closer to her. "Don't try to see more in this than there is. You saw what happened for yourself, you know what he did."

She looked at him silently, unable to deny what he was saying. He was right, she had seen it herself. She had known Severus wanted Draco dead, but still she had decided to believe him when he had said he would help him. She had helped Severus find Draco herself, had helped him do this to Draco. Suddenly, she felt like a fool.

Seeing her calm down, realizing she was finally listening, Kingsley reached his hand forward and she took it, letting him help her stand.

"I am sorry I did that," he said softly, "but you had to see it for yourself. I had to make you see the truth."

She nodded her head, but before she could someone else spoke.

"I do hope I am not interrupting anything," Severus said coldly from the doorway, his eyes flicking from her to Kingsley, down to their still joint hands, and then back to her.

She instantly let go of Kingsley's hand and took a step away from him, but Severus didn't say anything else. Instead, he stepped inside the room and walked towards Draco, leaving the potion vials he had been carrying on the small table before walking to the cupboard to retrieve some more.

"What are you doing?" she heard Harry snap.

"What does it look like I'm doing, Potter?" he snapped back as he walked to Draco with a few more potions in hand.

"Just stay away from him."

"Excuse me?" Severus said, leaving the potions on the table and turning to him. "I was aware of the fact that you disliked Mr Malfoy here, but I never thought you would simply want to let him die."

"I was aware of the fact that you disliked Mr Malfoy here," Harry replied mockingly, taking a step forward, "but I never thought you would torture him to that extreme."

"You may think whatever you like, Potter," Severus said angrily, "but you will not give me orders."

"How do we know you're not just trying to finish him off?" Ron asked, and Severus looked at him as if he were stupid.

"If I wanted to _finish him off_, Mr Weasley, then I wouldn't have brought him here, would I?"

"We know you did that to him," Ron replied. "Why should we trust you will help him now?"

"Why don't you just leave and let us take care of him?"

"Let you take care of him, Mr Potter?" Severus asked, a single eyebrow raised in question as he turned to him. "You wouldn't know where to start. If you want Draco to live, then let me work."

"I still don't…"

"Will you just let him do it?" Hermione snapped angrily, and then turned to Severus. "Heal him," she said in the same tone, and ignored his questioning look.

"I would prefer not to work with an audience," he said, looking pointedly at Ron and Harry.

"We're not lea…"

"Let's go," Molly interrupted her son, speaking for the first time since Severus had arrived. "There is nothing we can do in here."

"But…"

"We are leaving, Ronald," she said more firmly, motioning for both of them to leave the room. "Hermione, dear?"

"I'm not going anywhere," she said firmly, and the witch merely nodded.

"Kingsley?"

"I'll stay."

"Very well," Molly said, silencing Ron's protests and closing the door behind her.

"Miss Granger, I…"

"Just heal him," she said briskly, not wanting to hear whatever Severus wanted to say.

She could see the confusion and anger cross his face for a moment, but he merely nodded and turned back to Draco, uncorking the first vial and sitting Draco up so he could drink it.

She gasped in surprise when Draco suddenly started coughing and shaking, trying to push Severus away without waking up.

"What are you doing to him?" she asked, running to Draco's side and taking his hand in hers.

This was all her fault; he wouldn't be in that condition if it weren't for her. Draco had helped her when she had needed him, and what did she do when it was he that needed her? Well, send Severus to him, and get him tortured, maybe killed.

"No," she breathed. He couldn't die. She had to do something, she had to help him.

"He needs to take the potion to heal," Severus said, and although she could hear the anger in his tone, he didn't say anything else.

"But it's hurting him, you're hurting him."

"Hermione," she heard Kingsley say softly by her side, taking her hand and trying to pull her away from Draco. "If you want him to live, you will have to let Severus work," he said gently, and she reluctantly let go of Draco, letting Kingsley pull her a few steps away form him.

"This is all my fault," she said, her eyes fixed on Draco as he stopped coughing and fell back against the bed. Severus gave him another potion, but this time he didn't react.

"It's not your fault," Kingsley said, his tone soft yet firm. "I dislike this as much as you do, but we need Draco alive, and for that we will have to trust him on this," he said, looking pointedly at Severus.

Deep inside, she believed Severus was trying to help Draco, to save his life, but that didn't make things any easier. Her own words echoed in her mind as she watched Severus work.

_"How do I know you won't just turn him in, and that you won't hand him over to get killed?" she had asked Severus, when he had told her he needed to see Draco._

_"You don't," he had replied. "But if you want my help, then you will tell me how to find him. You asked me to trust you, now I ask the same of you." _

Had she been such a fool? Had he been lying all along, only wanting to kill Draco? Perhaps he had only said what he knew she needed to hear,

That was a stupid thought; there must be an explanation to what had happened, for what she had seen, but as she watched Draco, the little voice of reason in her head became softer, barely audible. How could she think straight in such a situation?

"I cannot give him any more potions at the moment," Severus said after a few minutes, applying some salve on the burn on Draco's chest. Then he turned to them, his eyes on Kingsley as he spoke. "I will bring a few more potions he will need, and leave instructions on how and when to give them to him."

She heard Kingsley agree to what Severus was saying, and ask a few questions of his own about Draco's condition, but she wasn't paying any attention. Her eyes had been focused on Draco while Severus spoke, not sure why but not wanting to meet his gaze.

"Miss Granger," he said after a moment of silence, and she forced herself to look at him. He was standing a few feet from her, his expression unreadable. "May I have a word with you?"

"I don't want to talk to you," she said, her voice weak even to her own ears. The relief of knowing he was alive and well mixed inside of her with the worry over Draco and the anger at what Severus had done to him, and she was afraid she would say something she might regret later.

"It will only be a moment," he started, but she shook her head. "Miss Granger," he insisted, but she still didn't agree.

Seeing no other way out, no other way to avoid him, she turned to the door, but before she could take a single step towards it she felt his hand on her arm, his fingers wrapped tightly around it, holding her in place.

"Hermione," he said, as she yanked her arm away.

"Just leave me alone!" she almost screamed, all control finally lost. "Do you have any idea what I've gone through, waiting here for you, not knowing if you were still alive, if he had killed you? For hours I could do nothing but wait, fearing the worse and knowing there was nothing I could do to help you, and then you show up, unharmed, and with him like that," she said, turning to Draco for a second before her eyes fell on Severus again. She could feel the tears well in her eyes, and she tried to blink them back as she spoke. "I trusted you; I told you how to find him. You said you would help him, and I believed you, and now look at what you have done to him!"

"It is not…"

"I don't want to hear it," she interrupted. "I saw what you did to him, I saw it for myself. You tortured him, you cursed him until he was barely alive, and whatever reason you might think you had for doing it, it is not good enough," she said, wiping away the tears that had fallen down her cheeks angrily. "You'd promised me you'd help him," she whispered after a moment, her voice broken. "I trusted you."

He looked at her in silence, his expression still unreadable. Wasn't he even going to react? Was he made of stone? As she looked back at him, she wondered if perhaps that was the truth, that he didn't care; not for what she thought, not for her. The small voice of reason tried to tell her it wasn't true, but she wasn't listening.

"Hermione?" a soft voice croaked from behind her. She instantly turned to the side, in the direction the voice was coming from, and her gaze rested on Draco. His eyes were open, a pained expression on his face, his breathing heavy.

"Draco," she gasped, running to his side and taking his hand in hers. "You are awake. Are you all right?"

"Hermione," he repeated, his voice softer than before.

"Don't speak," she said softly. "Just rest; everything will be all right."

"Did it…" he started, but grimaced in pain as he tried moved and coughed lightly. "Did it work?" he asked after a few seconds.

"Work? What are you talking about?"

"The plan. Did Severus' plan work?"

She looked at him for a second, not sure what he meant.

"What plan?" she asked, but he didn't reply. His eyes had closed again, his breathing even as he slept.

Confused, she turned around, only to find the door open, and Severus nowhere to be seen.


	56. doubts

"Damn," she cursed, her eyes on the now empty doorway

"Damn," she cursed, her eyes on the now empty doorway. With one last glance in Draco's direction, she hurriedly started towards the open door. She had to find Severus, had to talk to him. She had to know what was going on.

"Hermione." A deep, soft voice stopped her, and she turned around again to face Kingsley. She had completely forgotten he was there.

She looked at him for a second and then hesitantly turned to the door again. But this time, as he spoke her name again, he wrapped his fingers around her arm, gently yet firmly, stopping her.

"Not now, I have to go."

"No you don't. Just let him go."

"Didn't you hear what Draco said?" she asked. If she didn't hurry, Severus would leave.

"I did."

"I have to talk to him, Kingsley. I have to know what happened. If there was a plan…"

"It doesn't matter," he said, pulling her back when she tried to move towards the doorway. "Whatever reason he had, whatever plan he was following, that doesn't change what he did. You saw it yourself, Hermione. Why do you need more?"

She looked at him for a moment, not sure what to reply. How could she explain it to him? How could she make him understand she needed to go to Severus, that she needed to speak to him? She knew Kingsley was worried about her, that he was trying to protect her, but no matter what she said, she didn't think he would ever understand.

"I have to go," she said, trying to move to the door, but he wouldn't let go of her arm.

"Just let him go, Hermione," he said softly.

She turned to Kingsley again, her eyes locked on his. How much did he know? Had he somehow figured out what was going on? Had he found out about her and Severus' relationship, if it could be called that? And if he had, why hadn't he told anyone else?

Seeming to read the question in her mind, he simply nodded his head, and she felt her knees go weak.

"You…you know?" she asked in a weak voice. She wasn't ready for that, wasn't ready to face someone who knew about them, for her friends to find out. "How long?" she muttered, afraid of the answer she would receive. It was the only thing she could think to ask at the moment.

"I'd had my suspicions for some time," he said, "but I wasn't sure until the night we went out for a drink."

She gasped and covered her mouth with her free hand, feeling all the blood in her veins rush to her cheeks. She could remember what had happened that night. Kingsley had said he was taking her out for a drink and Severus, probably upset by the comment for some reason, had made the pair of knickers she had accidentally forgotten in his place appear in front of her, in midair, for everyone to see. She had hoped she had been fast enough to take them and hide them, that Kingsley hadn't seen them, but now she knew he had. He certainly hadn't made any comment at the time, but now she knew that, not only had he seen it, but he had also found out about her and Severus then.

"Why didn't you say anything?" she asked hesitantly.

"Because you were so upset with him, I thought you were going to realize what was going on by yourself."

"What?"

"He's using you, Hermione," he said, and she could tell he truly believed what he was saying. But it wasn't true, she knew it wasn't. "First he used you to pass information to the Order, then to join us again, and to gain our trust. Now he's using you to remain here, no matter what. What do you think he will do when he doesn't need you anymore?"

"That's not true," she said, yanking her arm free. "That's not how it is." Shaking her head, she took a step away from him.

"You are smarter than that, Hermione," he said softly, sadness evident in his eyes. "Does he have you so blinded, so ready to believe his every word, that you don't see the truth?"

"You don't know what you're talking about." Why was he saying those things? Severus wouldn't do that to her, he wouldn't use her like that.

"Don't I?" he asked, but his tone was still gentle, even understanding. He wasn't angry at her, he was worried. He was trying to make her see things his way, making her see things he seemed to honestly believe. He was looking after her, but that didn't change what his words did to her, how they hurt; because he was making her doubt.

"I have been working with him for years, Hermione," he continued after a moment. "I have seen what he is capable of. What you saw today," he said, glancing at Draco's sleeping form for a moment, "is nothing. Severus is good at what he does, the best perhaps, but he has no boundaries, and no morals. He is not afraid to harm or kill anyone who stands in his way, to get what he wants. He is using you now, and he won't hesitate to take you out of his life when he doesn't need you anymore."

She shook her head again, and took another step away from him. How could he say those things to her? How could he believe them? He obviously didn't know Severus like she did. He would never do that to her, never treat her that way. Kingsley was wrong, he had to be.

She had gone through so much with Severus, she knew she shouldn't doubt him anymore. He had proved time and again that he was on their side, and he had risked himself for her more times than she could count.

Yet, the voice of doubt spoke in her head, he had proved capable, perhaps even willing, to get her out of his way when she seemed unnecessary. Had he not, after all, taken all her memories away after he had finally managed to return to the Order?

He had told her it was to save her, because Voldemort had ordered her death, the voice of reason argued, but like before, it was becoming more and more faint.

If she was honest with herself, she couldn't help but wonder, deep inside, why Severus would care about her. She was just some witch. A witch, in fact, that he had hated for years. She was bossy, and opinionated, and never stopped asking questions. Why would he want her? With all the witches out there, why would he care for her, if not for the reasons Kingsley had mentioned? She hated herself for doubting him, but she couldn't help it.

"You deserve better, Hermione," Kingsley said, stepping closer to her. "You deserve someone who really cares about you, someone that will love you for who you are."

Taking another step closer, he took her hand in his.

"I'm sorry I have to tell you this," he said, "but it is for your own good. He will only hurt you, and you don't deserve that."

She watched him lean closer to her, but it felt as if her mind had suddenly shut down, and she was incapable of logical though, much less movement. She was fighting an internal battle, a part of her sure she could trust Severus, the other arguing the exact opposite. She couldn't react to anything else.

As if sent by the gods, Draco's violent fit of cough startled them both and shattered the moment. Suddenly aware of what had almost happened, she took the chance and hurried over to Draco, vaguely hearing Kingsley silently leave the room and close the door behind him.

Carefully slipping her arm under Draco's neck, ready to help him up and try to stop the cough, she was surprised to notice it stop the moment the door clicked closed, a devilish smirk replacing the pained expression that had been on his face seconds before.

"Draco Malfoy, what are you up to?" she asked, a faint smile touching her lips now she saw he was better.

"Couldn't let that bloody old bastard take advantage of my girl," he replied, his voice still weak, but tinted with the confidence that had always surrounded him.

"Your girl?"

Instead of replying, he locked eyes with her for a moment.

"You wouldn't happen to have some potion for the pain here, would you?" he asked, changing the subject just as she was about to speak.

"Severus said he couldn't give you any more potions for now. You've taken too many as it is."

"Bloody wonderful," he groaned. "How about a drink then?"

"Of course," she said, pouring some water into a small glass and helping him sit, so he wouldn't choke on it.

He groaned again in pain at the movement, but didn't say anything as she helped him drink, lying back down after a moment.

"Bloody git didn't say it would hurt this much," he groaned, closing his eyes for a moment as his face paled again.

"You mean Severus?" she asked, eager for information.

"Of course," he replied. "He said he would take away most of the pain." He groaned again as he shifted, trying to get more comfortable. "But if what I felt was only part of the pain I should have felt…"

"What happened, Draco?" she asked hesitantly.

"Didn't he tell you?" he asked, and she shook her head. "Can't you tell just by looking at me?"

"I know he tortured you."

"Bloody right he did. It's a miracle he didn't kill me in the process."

"But you said there was a plan," she whispered. "A few minutes ago, when you first woke up, you asked me if Severus' plan had worked."

"Well, it obviously did, or I would be dead now."

"What was the plan, Draco? Why did he hurt you?"

"I don't know," he replied. "He said it would be better, safer, if I didn't know. He said it was the only way to make it work."

"But he was talking to you," she insisted. "While he tortured you, he was talking to you. It looked as if he was asking you some questions."

"How do you know that?" he asked with a strange expression on his face.

"I saw it," she replied hesitantly after a moment.

"What?" he asked, suddenly sounding both angry and alarmed.

"When Severus brought you here, you were barely alive. He had to leave you to go find the potions you needed, and he only told us to take care of you until he returned. We had to know what had happened to you, what curses you had been hit with, so we could help you. The only way for us to do that was looking into your memories."

"What did you see?" he asked, visibly relaxing, and she wondered what memories it was he had been so afraid they could have seen.

"The images weren't very clear, and seemed to jump ahead all the time. It was very confusing. All I saw was Severus cursing you, and talking as well."

"Then you saw all there is to see, at least for my part."

"What do you mean?" she asked, confused.

"That is all I remember."

"But what was he asking? I couldn't hear him."

"That is probably because I can't remember what he said. I'm not even sure I could hear him myself when it happened."

"But…"

"I've told you everything I know," he said. "If you want to know what really happened, you will have to ask Severus, although I doubt he will tell you anything."

"Why not?"

"You know how he is; he just loves his secrets playing mystery man."

"Why did you agree to help him, if you didn't even know what he had planned?"

"Because I trust you," he said simply. "You had told him where to find me, and I knew you wouldn't have if you didn't trust him, if you thought he wanted to harm me. I didn't trust him, I simply trusted your judgement."

She was amazed at the honesty in his words, at how much he seemed to believe in her, to trust her.

"Thank you," she whispered, and saw a faint smile touch his lips.

"I hope it was the right thing to do, though. I had to let him take my mother. He said he would keep her safe, but the truth is, I have no way of knowing where she is, or if she is all right."

"Your mother is fine," she said confidently, and saw his eyes widen in surprise at her statement.

"She is? How do you know?"

"I saw her this morning."

"You saw her? Where is she, where did he take her?"

"She's safe," she assured him. "Perhaps not entirely happy, but she is safe."

"Where?"

"I don't know the location. She is with my parents, in a safe house."

"He is keeping my mother with your parents?" Draco asked, surprised and amused at the same time.

"And wandless, too."

"He has gone crazy," he said, and she laughed.

"You don't have to worry about her."

"Thank you."

"For what?"

"For everything."

"You should get some rest, you are still too weak," she said, turning around and taking a step closer to the door.

"What? Don't I even get a goodnight kiss?" he asked, the mischievous look on his eyes belying the innocent expression on his face.

"Don't push your luck, ferret," she told him over her shoulder, taking the few steps that separated her from the door and stepping out of the room, leaving him to rest.

"So Malfoy's still alive," Ron said, as soon as she walked into the hallway. It would seem he and Harry had stayed close by, probably wanting to know what was happening inside the room.

"Kingsley told us he was awake," Harry added.

"He is."

"So what did he say?"

"He can't remember what happened."

"That seems to happen a lot, lately," Ron remarked snidely, but she ignored him.

"So he will recover?"

"He will."

"I'm not sure whether I should be relieved or worried about that."

"He has helped us many times, Harry," she said, getting tired of having to defend everyone in front of them. "He took more risks for us than many Order members. I trust him, and perhaps it's time you trust him too."

"Well, perhaps not all of us are so willing to trust Death Eaters."

"Will you stop being a prat, Ronald?" she asked, tiredly. "You are smart, and a good man, why don't you forget the things that happened in the past and give them a chance to prove themselves, at least?"

He remained silent, apparently shocked by her words. She knew he wasn't being mean, and didn't mean to hurt her, or be so thick headed, but even if he didn't say it out loud, she knew he worried a lot. Just like most of his family, he seemed to always be worried about everyone's well being, even if he sometimes did silly things that endangered others instead of protect them. For now, at least, he seemed willing to listen to her, and perhaps give Severus and Draco the benefit of the doubt.

She wanted to go to Severus, even after all that Kingsley had told her. She wanted to know what he had tried to say to her, wanted to hear his version of the events, but he had left headquarters already, and the only place to go looking for him she could think of was his house. She wasn't about to just Apparate there. He would be back soon, he had to. He probably needed to check on Draco, or at least give them some instructions for helping him, like what potions he needed to take and when. She would wait for him there, and when he came, she would confront him.

Hating the way everyone in the house seemed to be looking at her, although she couldn't really be sure it wasn't just her perception, she spent the rest of the afternoon sitting by Draco. He hadn't woken up again, and it was just about the only place in the house where she knew she wouldn't be disturbed.

Having decided to skip dinner, she was contemplating the possibility of sneaking to the kitchen to grab a snack when loud thump startled her.

The Order members had left already, and everyone in the house had gone to bed not long before, so she decided to go see what the source of the noise was, hoping perhaps Severus was back.

Wrapping her fingers around her wand just in case, she quickly opened the door and stepped outside of the small infirmary, making her way down the hallway and towards the entrance door.

The lights were off, but she could clearly see four figures standing together by the doorway, talking in hushed tones, seemingly waiting for someone to arrive?

"What's going on?" she asked, when she recognized the figures, and they all turned to her, wands raised, seemingly startled by the interruption.

"What are you doing up?" Molly asked, as they lowered their wands, and she stepped closer to them.

"Not tired. What's going on?"

"We don't know," Kingsley replied, walking over to the window and peering outside. I received a message saying I had to come here fast."

She looked at the other three occupants of the room, Mad Eye, Molly and Arthur, wondering why they were there, but they seemed as distracted as Kingsley was.

"Who are you waiting for?"

"He's here," Kingsley said, moving away from the window as Molly pulled the front door open.

There, standing on the landing, was a man, wrapped in a thick, black coat, his face hidden from view by the hood. As soon as the door was open, the man stepped inside, stumbling slightly as he tried to walk, and reaching for Arthur's arm for support.

"Are you all right?" Molly asked alarmed, and the man nodded.

"All those curses left me a little weak."

"Remus," Hermione gasped, when she recognized the voice. Her first instinct was to run to him, but he was obviously too weak for warm welcomes.

It had been weeks since she had last seen him. Over the last two years, he had been leaving the Order for weeks at a time, sometimes months, but no one had ever told her where he went to, no matter how many times she asked. Perhaps this was her chance to find out. Curiosity, it seemed, easily got the best of her.

"What happened to you?" she asked him, as Arthur helped him sit and Molly muttered something about healing potions and hurried away.

"Death Eaters attack," he groaned, as he rested back on the couch.

"Why would he send his men to attack you? I thought the pack was on his side," Kingsley said. So that was where Remus had been.

"They were, at least most. I have no idea why he attacked us, but this changes things now."

"Why didn't Severus inform us of the attack?" Kingsley asked, sounding almost angry.

"He did. He contacted me a few minutes before the Death Eaters arrived. He said it had been a sudden decision, and that I had to get out of there. If he hadn't warned me, we would have all been killed. He gave us just enough time to get ready."

"Didn't he say anything else?"

"He told me he would come here as soon as he could, that he would explain things to us then."

"How many werewolves were killed?"

"Not many. I daresay Voldemort lost more Death Eaters tonight than wolves he got killed."

"How will this affect your work with the pack?" Mad Eye asked from across the room.

"I am positive this will turn to our advantage. Whatever support the pack was willing to give Voldemort is now gone. Until tonight, convincing the others to remain neutral was the best I could hope for; after this, perhaps they would even be willing to join us in the fight. They do not like being betrayed."

"Perhaps we can come up with a plan, a proposal for them. We could offer them our help in exchange for theirs. Support against the werewolf legislation could be a good start," Arthur suggested.

"It would be," Remus said, but before he could continue the door opened again.

Severus stood tall by the open door, his eyes searching the room, taking in every occupant and stopping when he saw her. After a second, he turned back to Remus.

"Are you all right?"

"Yes," Remus replied. "Thank you."

A small nod was the only response he received as Severus stepped inside, closed the door, and took a step closer to them.

"I do not have much time; I have to return to headquarters shortly. How is Draco?" he asked, looking at Kingsley.

"He seems to be better."

"Give him these," Severus said, pulling a few vials out of his robes and handing them to him. "Half a vial every two hours. He should be almost back to normal in a day."

Kingsley looked at him for a moment, surprise and disbelief mixed on his face, probably wondering how Draco could heal so fast from such terrible wounds, but he said nothing about it, and neither did Severus.

"I have been informed there haven't been many losses on your side," he said to Remus, after a moment.

"As soon as you told me the Death Eaters were coming, we sent most members of the pack away, leaving only the strongest ones to fight."

"I assume that leaves you in a better position to convince the others to join the light."

"Probably."

"Good. They will be needed."

"Why did they attack us? The pack had already agreed to help Voldemort; he had no reason to harm us."

"He believed the werewolves had betrayed him, that they were about to switch sides."

"What made him think that?"

"I did. I would have warned you sooner, but I didn't have a chance. I didn't think he would organize an attack in only a few hours."

"You told him that?" Kingsley asked, but Severus didn't seem to hear him, or if he did, he decidedly ignored him.

"You will have to go back tonight. We need to know if we can count on them, and how many will be willing to fight." He waited for Remus to nod before continuing, giving orders with an ease that surprised her. "Arthur, you need to contact everyone in the Ministry willing to join us, as well as all the pureblood families you can, both neutral and favouring the Order." When Arthur nodded as well, he turned to Mad Eye. "Everyone you know, Alastor. If you think they can help, bring them here." Looking at Kingsley, he continued. "Organize an Order meeting for tomorrow, early morning. All the Order members will have to get ready, along with everyone willing to join us. Put them through the toughest training program you have. I will contact you again as soon as I can to work on the tactical issues. There's not much time."

"Not much time?"

"We have less than five days before it happens."

"What are you talking about? What do we have to get ready for?"

"War."


	57. Severus' plan

It had been almost 36 hours since Snape had gone to headquarters and had told them the battle was coming, and now there was a

It had been almost 36 hours since Snape had gone to headquarters and had told them the battle was coming, and now there was a deadline, a date to both look forward and fear, time suddenly seemed to pass ten times faster.

Never had she seen the Order's headquarters so crowded, so full of life; she hadn't stopped to count, there wasn't time for that, but she could swear at least two hundred witches and wizards had been there since Snape´s visit.

It was amazing, how everyone in the Order seemed to be working so hard gathering forces, when they knew so little about what was going to happen, what they were getting ready for. Severus had only managed to tell them to contact everyone they thought could help, and that they only had a few days before Voldemort had summoned him, and he had been forced to leave. He hadn't returned yet.

As she swallowed the last bit of her sandwich and left the kitchen to look for Harry, her thoughts drifted to Severus again. She hadn't had a chance to talk to him yet, and that bothered her. She still wanted to know what had happened the night he had taken Draco to Voldemort, and what was going to happen in only a few days, but she didn't dare look for him or try to contact him in any way. There were much more important things than her curiosity. She couldn't help worrying about him, also. She kept wondering where he was, and if he was all right, wondering why he hadn't returned yet, fearing perhaps something had happened to him, and thinking maybe Voldemort had somehow finally found out the truth about him.

She dodged a couple of young Aurors hurriedly walking down the hallway, seemingly oblivious to anything other than their hushed conversation, and then had to take a detour when she found the room she was planning on going through to get to her friends locked, apparently due to the meeting taking place inside. It was Monday noon, and the house had been full all day. Everyone seemed to have decided at the same time their jobs could wait, and although she was glad they were there, running into so many people all the time was quickly getting on her nerves.

Finally reaching her destination, she opened the door without even bothering to knock, wanting to go back to training, but instead she froze in place at the scene inside, gasping in surprise at the sight of Harry, on a duelling stance, with Draco in front of him, in the same position.

"What's going on here?" she asked alarmed, but neither one of them seemed to even notice she was there. Draco had just shot a curse at Harry, which he had deflected, sending another Draco's way.

"Stop!" she yelled, running between them and almost getting caught in the cross fire.

"What are you doing?" Harry asked, startled, blocking the curse and lowering his wand.

"What am I doing? What are _you _doing? Have you gone crazy? We have enough going on as it is; can't you two just work out your differences some other time?"

"Hermione, it's not what you think."

"Isn't it?" she asked, soundly slightly irritated. "And what on earth happened to him?" She had only just noticed Ron lying unconscious across the room.

"We were practising some curses, and his shield charm wasn't strong enough to block the last one. He should wake up in an hour or so," Harry explained apologetically. At Draco's inelegant snort, she turned to him.

"And what are you doing here?"

"He needed someone to practise the curses with, and I'm tired of lying down," he said.

"I don't care if you're tired of lying down; you have to stay in bed until you are fully recovered."

"I am perfectly all right."

"Why did you let him help you, Harry?"

"I thought you wanted me to give him a chance."

"Oh, don't you try to fool me, Harry Potter, you just wanted a chance to curse him!" she accused, hands on hips as she pursed her lips and frowned at him.

"A chance to try, perhaps," she heard Draco mutter.

"As if you could defeat me in a duel," Harry shot back.

"Please, I could beat you in a minute. All they seem to teach you here are light curses. I'd have you crying for help before you could fire your first curse."

"Well, why don't we see just how…"

"Enough," she yelled, stopping them before the argument got out of control. "Draco is right, though. We know very little dark magic, and it could certainly come in useful on Thursday."

"Do you know what is going to happen?"

"I told you already, Harry, I know as much as you do. If I hear anything else, then you'll be the first one I'll talk to."

"How come Snape didn't tell you?"

"Have you tried to awaken him?" she asked, ignoring Harry's question and walking over to where Ron was. The last thing she wanted to do was try and explain the situation between her and Severus to any of them.

"I tried all the spells I knew, but they didn't work, so I thought I'd just let the curse wear off. It wasn't a powerful one, after all."

Without bothering to reply, she kneeled beside Ron and waved her wand over his head. After a moment, his eyes fluttered open.

"What happened?" he asked, groaning in pain as he slowly stood up.

"You didn't manage to block the last curse. Sorry, mate."

"It's okay," he muttered, rubbing his sore shoulder. "What's he doing here?" he asked, when he noticed Draco.

"He will help us practise," she said, walking back to the middle of the room, where Harry and Draco were. "He will," she repeated more firmly, when she saw Ron about to complain, "and I don't want to hear another word about it. If we are going to face Voldemort in three days, then we will need all the help we can get. And especially you," she added, turning to Harry, who simply nodded.

"Let's get started then," he said, stepping closer to Draco and asking, "What first?"

They had been practising spells, charms, and mainly curses for hours nonstop, and every single inch of her body ached. Although she had already known most of the curses Draco had taught them, she hadn't had a chance to practise them until then, and she had been hit a few times.

Never in her life had she been more relieved to hear Molly calling them for dinner. After all that duelling, she was more than glad to find an excuse to stop, at least momentarily.

"Let's go then," she said, walking to where Ron had fallen and helping him up.

"Yes, I'm starving," he said, walking with her to the door with a slight limp.

"I'll go later," Harry said, dodging Draco's curse and firing three more, one right after the other.

She had never seen him more determined, more eager to learn, to improve. He was like a machine, mastering each curse with a speed that was both surprising and frightening, so focused on what he was doing he didn't even seem to get tired, or feel any pain from the few times Draco had managed to hit him.

"No, Harry, you need to eat. And you have to rest too."

"Just give me another hour."

"Draco," she tried, "you need rest as well. You shouldn't even be doing this."

"I already told you, I am all right," he said, summoning an old table and moving it right in front of him, blocking Harry's attack. "Too weak," he yelled at Harry, as he sent what was left of the table out of the way.

"Leave them," Ron said, tugging on her sleeve. "There's no point insisting."

She turned to Ron with a frown, ready to tell him she knew the only reason why he was so willing to leave was because he wanted food, but decided against it. He was wrong, after all. She could hear the determination in Harry's voice, and knew better than to insist.

"One hour," she finally said, and saw Harry nod as he continued to duel Draco. "If you're not in the kitchen by them, I'll come here, make you stop, and then drag you both there myself, and you know I could do it without breaking a sweat."

"Sure you could, Granger," Draco mocked, although she was pleased to hear a hint of apprehension in his voice.

"We'll be there," Harry assured her, and she finally allowed Ron to drag her down the hallway, towards the kitchen.

"Hermione, what's wrong?" Ron asked, when she suddenly froze in place, just as they reached the kitchen door. "What is it?" he repeated when she didn't reply, looking worriedly at her, but she wasn't paying him any attention.

She had heard Severus, had heard his voice coming from the library; she was sure of it. He was there, at last. It was her chance to see him, to talk to him.

"Hermione?" Ron called again, and she finally turned to him.

"You go ahead; I'll be there in a few minutes."

"Where are you going?"

"I have to do something, I'll be back soon," she said absently, making her way to the library.

The door was open, but she didn't step inside right away. Severus was there, his back to her, along with Remus and Kingsley, and none of them seemed to have noticed her.

"So how many can we count on?" Kingsley asked.

"So far I have managed to convince almost twenty, but I think more will join us given time," Remus replied.

"Time is what we do not have; there are only a few days left, and we need as much help as we can get. The Dark Lord's army is bigger than the Order's, and the advantage of surprise won't be enough to defeat them."

"You could have given us more time to prepare. Five days is hardly enough to get ready for something like that," Kingsley complained.

"There are reasons why this couldn't wait any longer. Suffice it to say, this is the moment in which the Dark Lord is weakest, and given enough time, he would find a way to remedy that situation. It was either now or never."

"At his weakest? What do you mean by that?"

"That information is not for me to tell you. You know all that you need to make sure the Order is ready. I have to leave now."

"Leave? You only just got here, there are many things you haven't explained yet."

"That will have to wait. The longer I am away from the Dark Lord's headquarters, the more likely he is to suspect me. Now if you'll excuse me," he said, turning around to face the door.

He froze in place for a second, his eyes locked on her, a surprised expression on his face, quickly masked by indifference. Without a word, or even acknowledging her, he stepped forward, her hesitation at his attitude giving him enough time to walk past her and toward the entrance door.

"Severus," she called, although keeping her tone low, as she hurriedly followed him, but his long strides made it impossible for her to reach him without breaking into a run. "Severus, wait," she called again, but he didn't even seem to hear her. Feeling slightly ridiculous, and hoping no one would see her, she started to run after him.

He had reached the door already, and was stepping outside, ready to Apparate away. Without stopping to think, she ran to him and grabbed his arm before he could leave.

"Severus," she said, turning him around to face her.

"What is it, Miss Granger?" he snarled at her.

"I need to talk to you."

"I seem to remember you saying you did not wish to speak with me, not long ago."

"Severus, please," she begged.

"Hermione?" a voice called from behind her. Not even bothering to see who it was, she closed the door behind her, leaving her and Severus outside the house.

"Please," she said again, feeling his eyes locked on hers, as if he were searching inside them, although she knew he wasn't using Legilimency.

"Hold on," he said, and she did so without question, feeling the world around her vanish as he Apparated them both away.

"Where are we?" she asked, as soon as she felt the firm ground beneath her feet again. Feeling him trying to move back, she let go of his arm, her eyes taking in their surroundings.

"Muggle London," he replied. "The last thing I need is to be overheard by some meddling Order member."

"But why are we in the middle of a street?"

"I do not have all day, so if there is something you want to say, then say it and let's get this over with."

"I want to know what happened the other night, with Draco."

"That is none of your concern," he replied briskly.

"None of my concern?" she shot back, and then took a deep breath to try and control her temper. Arguing would get her nowhere. "What happened?" she tried again.

"I thought you had seen it all for yourself already. Is this what you needed so desperately to talk to me about?"

"Please, don't make this harder than it already is."

"Do you think this is a game?" he asked angrily, backing her against the wall. "One moment you won't talk to me, refuse to hear what I have to say, reach your own conclusions about things you know nothing of, the next you run after me out of the Order's headquarters, stop me when I try to leave and demand I answer your questions, in a place where anyone could hear. Believe it or not, Miss Granger, the world does not revolve around you, waiting to follow your every wish, and neither do I. You had your chance to get the answers you wanted and you refused to listen. Now, if you'll excuse me, I have more important things to do," he snarled, pushing himself away from her.

"Wait," she said, taking one of his arms in both her hands to keep him in place. "I'm sorry for the way I spoke to you, and I am sorry I doubted you, but I had asked you to protect Draco, and you had told me you would. I was the one that told you how to find him, and I saw what you did to him. You may have had your reasons to do what you did," she said, "but you betrayed my trust, and I had the right to be angry. I will not apologize for that."

"I don't want an apology. You should know by now that there are things more important than one person's well being, even if that person is Draco Malfoy."

"Please, tell me what happened," she said, keeping both her hands wrapped around his arm, enjoying his closeness.

"I thought you had already seen it for yourself," he said, and although his tone was still sharp, she was glad to notice he didn't seem so angry anymore.

"I only saw you torturing Draco. He told me that was everything he remembered."

"Of course he did."

"I also saw you talking to him, asking him questions, but I couldn't hear what you said."

"I was telling him to answer the Dark Lord's questions, tell him what he knew."

"Why would you do that? If Draco told Voldemort what he knew, then he would find out you're really helping the Order."

"I knew he wouldn't speak," he simply replied.

"How? With that kind of torture, I cannot imagine him keeping quiet, especially since he doesn't owe the Order anything."

"Let me rephrase then; I knew he _wouldn't _talk."

"What?"

"I clearly couldn't risk Draco breaking down, so I had to make sure he wouldn't be able to speak, if he had wanted to. It is interesting how most forget the uses of some of the most basics of spells, such as Silencing Charms. The one I used was particularly helpful in this case; Draco was able to scream, but he was incapable of forming words."

She looked at Severus for a moment, surprised by the way he could so easily talk about the torture he had inflicted on someone, and yet awed once again at his cunning and his courage. She knew he had taken a great risk by taking to Voldemort someone who could so easily expose him. Things were starting to fall into place in her mind, starting to make sense, but there was something missing, something that wasn't quite right.

"But there are other ways," she suddenly blurted out.

"Excuse me?"

"Even if Draco couldn't speak, there are other ways in which Voldemort could have found out the truth. I was led to believe he was a very powerful Legilimens."

"He is," Severus replied, and she saw a strange gleam in his eyes, as if he was pleased with her line of thought.

"So Draco managed to keep him out of his mind, even through all the torture?"

"Of course not," he spat. "Draco wouldn't be able to stop the Dark Lord's attempt to search his mind for a second, even if he had been at his best."

"Then how?" she asked, confused.

"Expletus Obsequium," he replied.

"Complete submission?" she asked, after a moment.

"It is an ancient spell, one that grants the caster knowledge of everything that goes through the victim's mind at any given time." At her frown, he continued. "It was created centuries ago, for pureblood landlords to control their slaves, and soon it became common to use it on their wives as well. Needless to say, the spell is highly illegal now."

"But how would that help you?" she asked, intrigued and always eager to learn more.

"I modified the original spell, so that it would not only grant me access to Draco's mind, but also complete control over it."

"So you stopped Voldemort's attempts to enter his mind, and then showed him what you wanted him to see?" she asked, eyes wide in awe; she could see the faintest ghost of a smile touch his lips at her words.

"Indeed," he replied.

"What did you show him?" she asked, and watched him hesitate for a moment, as if trying to decide how much to tell her.

"I let the Dark Lord see proof of Draco's betrayal, of which he had already known. I showed him Draco talking to you, giving you information about the Death Eaters' plans," he started, his eyes searching hers for any kind of reaction, but she showed him none. At that point, she was long past surprise, and simply eager to learn the truth at last. "I also let the Dark Lord see Draco retrieving the Horcrux for you. He knew already that all but one had been destroyed, so there was no point in hiding it from him," he said. "Once I was certain the Dark Lord was convinced of Draco's betrayal, without a shadow of a doubt, I let him see you arranging a meeting with Draco five days from them; this Thursday."

"The battle you warned us about, the one everyone's getting ready for," she gasped, and he nodded.

"The Dark Lord now believes that you, Potter and Weasley will meet with Draco that night, away from the protection of the Order of the Phoenix, and he has decided it would be the best opportunity to rid himself of Potter once and for all."

"But why five days?" she asked. "That hardly gives us any time to prepare."

"It was as much time as I could safely grant the Order. The Dark Lord now knows only one of his Horcruxes remains, but it would take him days to create a new one, and after having split his soul so many times, such an action would leave him weak for days. I could not risk giving him enough time to attempt to create another one."

"What about the werewolves? You said it had been you that had led Voldemort to believe they had betrayed him as well."

"Lupin said the members of the pack were losing their patience, tired of the Dark Lord sending them on suicide missions. He believed they would turn against him if it continued to happen."

"So by telling him they had betrayed him, you got the Death Eaters to attack them?"

"Yes. After that, almost all werewolves refuse to help the Dark Lord. Many of them have agreed to fight for the Order, and Lupin believes he can convince more of them to do it."

"But they could all have gotten killed; it was too dangerous."

"Everything is dangerous, but it was a necessary move. We will need all the help we can get and more."

"So now Voldemort thinks he will find Ron, Harry, Draco and I alone somewhere this Thursday, and will attack us there, in an attempt to kill Harry."

"Yes."

"But if he thinks it will be just the three of us, then why do you need so many witches and wizards on our side? He wouldn't need to take many Death Eaters with him for just the three of us, and we should be able to outnumber them easily."

"He will only take a few Death Eaters with him," Severus said, "but he will be ready for more. He will not risk the opportunity to kill Potter. I am in charge of all the arrangements for the attack. The Dark Lord will be waiting for the four of you with only twenty Death Eaters, but the others will be ready in case they are needed, and they will be. If everything goes as planned, the Order should have a small advantage, because they will be ready for the attack, but that will only last a few minutes. As soon as the Dark Lord realizes what is happening, he will summon the rest of his troops, and if the Order isn't ready, then it will be the end."

"This time, Voldemort will be in the battle," she said, tightening her hold on his arm and pulling him closer. "You will not be able to hide your true allegiances any more."

"The time for hiding is long past. Now all that matters is winning the battle."

"He will go after you," she told him. "As soon as he finds out you are a traitor, he will kill you."

"If that helps the Order win, then it won't matter, and if it doesn't, then it won't make any difference."

"Aren't you scared?" she asked him softly, holding his hand against her chest.

"There is nothing to fear about death."

"You sound so brave," she said, with a small smile. "When you left me with my parents and went to see him, I was terrified," she confessed, trying to blink back the tears the memories brought. "When I saw Draco on the floor at headquarters, I thought it was you for a moment."

She felt his other hand on her cheek, so soft, almost caring, and she leaned into his touch.

"I thought I'd lost you."

"You foolish woman," he said, leaning closer to her, his eyes locked on hers as he spoke. "You shouldn't worry about me," he whispered against her lips. "You shouldn't care about me."

"How can I not?" she asked, tilting her head up so that her lips finally touched his, not giving him a chance to reply.

She could remember the feelings as if it had happened all over again, the fear of not knowing where he was, what was happening to him, the angst the thought of losing him made her feel. It was so deep, so terrible, that it made her chest ache, made her feel as if the air around her had suddenly vanished, and she couldn't take another breath.

Wrapping her hands around his neck she pulled him to her, deepening the kiss, needing to feel him, to know he was there with her, that he was safe. Sensing the desperation in her, he moved his arms around her waist, holding her against him. His kiss was just as hungry as hers, his touch searing even through layers of clothes. Did he need her as much as she needed him?

But all too soon he pulled back, his forehead resting against hers as he caught his breath.

"He is calling," he whispered after a moment.

"As always, his timing is impeccable."

"Indeed."

"Will you be all right?" she asked, and he nodded.

"I will go to the Order's headquarters tomorrow to help with the preparations."

"I'll be waiting," she said, tilting her head slightly and kissing him once more, this time slowly.

After a moment, he pulled away again, his hand lingering on her cheek as he stepped back.

"Come back to me," she whispered, so softly she wasn't sure he had heard her, but his eyes locked on hers, so deep, so unfathomable, and then he smiled, nodded, and Apparated away.


	58. two days

"Here," Severus said, pointing at a spot on the large map he had spread in front of him.

"Here where?" Rabastan Lestrange asked irritably, "You are pointing at half the forest."

"I am pointing at the area where the meeting will take place," Severus replied coldly. "I will know the exact coordinates when Draco does."

"That little bastard is the reason why they have captured my brother. Bring him here, give me an hour with him, and he will tell you anything you wish to know."

"I suppose you are more proficient at interrogation than your Master," Voldemort's cold voice came from behind them, startling them both.

"Of course not, My Lord, that is not what I mean," Rabastan was quick to reply, bowing deeply.

"Then what was it that you meant?" Voldemort asked in the same tone, clearly pleased to hear the fear in the wizard's tone.

"I was merely stating my desire to meet with the boy face to face and make him pay for his treason."

"You believe Lord Voldemort cannot take care of traitors by himself?"

"No, Master, of course you can. I was…"

"Crucio," Voldemort muttered, his tone bordering on bored as he watched the wizard fall to the floor and writhe in pain.

Voldemort had been in a foul mood ever since he had found out his Horcruxes had been destroyed; fouler than usual, in fact, and that was saying something.

Severus remained silent as Rabastan was cursed. He knew the wizard was lucky to be among Voldemort's most valued Death Eaters, or instead of being cursed, he would have been dead already.

"Get up," Voldemort hissed as he lifted the curse, and the wizard stood tall, not showing any sign of weakness. "Get everyone here," he commanded next.

"Yes, My Lord," Rabastan replied, quickly exiting the room.

"How are the plans progressing, Severus?"

"We are getting ready, Master, but we cannot work the details of the attack out until we have more information."

"And when will that be?"

"Draco has been healed, and I made sure he didn't remain at the Order's headquarters. The witch contacted him this morning to confirm the meeting. The hate is still the same, and she said it would take place in these woods," he said, pointing at the map once again, "although she didn't tell him exactly where. She has told him she would contact him again on the date of the meeting to tell him both the exact location and the time."

"Why not tell him now, why wait?" Voldemort asked him.

"I believe she doesn't know it herself yet. After the incident she was involved in and the memory loss, the Order is keeping a closer look on her and her friends. She probably wants to see the location herself beforehand and decide what the safest place to meet him is, and sneaking out of headquarters is not an easy feat."

"Master," Rabastan interrupted from the doorway. "Everyone is here."

"Send them in, then," Voldemort replied, walking to the head of the table and sitting on his high chair, motioning for Severus to take the seat to his right.

It took a few minutes for everyone to settle. The chairs around the table were taken by the higher ranked Death Eaters, while the others remained standing. There were only a few dozens wizards there, and they would be in charge of communicating Voldemort's commands to the others. They ones in the lowest ranks rarely met with their Master.

"Silence," Voldemort hissed after a few moments, although it was hardly necessary; most Death Eaters were silently waiting for him to speak already.

"Hudson," Voldemort said, and the wizard's head snapped up. "What are the news regarding the wands?"

"We have the materials we needed, and the Wandmaker is working day and night. He has already replaced most of the wands he destroyed when he snapped out of the Imperius Curse."

Severus remained silent, taking in the information. A few weeks prior, he had managed to find out where the Wandmaker was being kept, and had gone to find him. He had known he couldn't set him free, and he couldn't kill him either. Both options would alert the Dark Lord someone was betraying him. He took the only other possible option; sabotage. He had destroyed all the wands stored in the old basement and then lifted the Imperius Curse from the wizard, modifying his memories to make him believe he had destroyed the wands himself. But that wouldn't be enough, and he knew it.

Anticipating the situation, Severus had contacted another Wandmaker, Ollivander, who, after all he had been through while being held by Voldemort, had been more than happy to assist Severus in any way that he needed against the Dark Lord.

So, Severus had not only modified the Wandmaker's memories of the wands destruction; he had also tweaked older memories in the wizard's mind, back from the time when he had learnt how to create wands. Following Ollivander's careful instructions, he had changed some of that knowledge, so that what the man believed to be the perfect composition of a wand was actually not.

According to Ollivander, all the wands the wizard had made in the last few weeks would work, and under normal circumstances the wizard using them wouldn't notice anything different or wrong, but when they found themselves in a battle, or in a situation that required the use of powerful magic, they would realize they didn't work as they should. The new wands were not prepared to handle that kind f power, and the results would be mediocre magic, even at the hands of the most powerful wizard. It was the best Severus could do to contain the Death Eaters; it was a pity, though, that Voldemort himself would not use one. He would never part from his own wand.

"Get more assistance if needed," Voldemort commanded, bringing Severus' mind back to the present. "We need those wands ready."

"Yes, Master."

"Rogers," he called next, and two wizards turned to him. "What is happening at the Ministry?"

"After the last attack, they decided to prepare a new book to send to all wizarding homes with the basic protection spells and advise on safety."

"It is basically a revised version of the useless handbook they sent when they first found out you had returned, My Lord," the other continued.

"So they are not taking any special measures against us?" Voldemort asked, and the wizards shook their heads.

"Proles, what of the Department of International Magical Cooperation?"

"The minister tried to contact other governments, especially the countries closest, but they are not willing to get involved in a war."

"Make sure it remains that way," Voldemort instructed, before turning to the side, facing the only witch in the room. "Anything else?"

"Over the last two days there have been many absences at the Ministry, many employees taking days off. Most of them work in the Magical Law Enforcement Department, but not all."

"Order Members?"

"Yes, and others as well."

"Severus, do you know anything about this?" Voldemort asked him.

"I have only contacted the Order once in the last few days, so I cannot be certain, but I heard they were recruiting witches and wizards; perhaps that is the explanation for the absences."

"When this meeting is over, you will go to their headquarters and find out for certain. I want no surprises."

"Yes, My Lord."

"Jonesy," he said next, turning to yet another wizard. All Severus knew about this one was that he was an Unspeakable. Instead of replying, the wizard merely nodded. There were few people stranger than those working in the Department of Mysteries.

"Is your mission underway?" Voldemort asked him, and the wizard nodded again. "Do you have all the bodies you need in your possession?" Another nod. "Contact me when they are ready for the Awakening; I will do it myself. I want to be sure they respond to my command alone."

Severus felt his blood run cold at this. He had anticipated Voldemort would have all his Death Eaters at the ready when the time came, but he had not expected him to use Inferi as well. New plans would have to be made; the Order would need reinforcement.

"Severus," Voldemort hissed after a moment, and he stood up. He knew what the wizard wanted him to do.

"As some of you already know," he started, "we will have a unique opportunity to have Potter unprotected and ready to be killed soon. This Thursday, some time after sunset, he will leave the Order's headquarters, and that will be our chance. That leaves us two days to prepare." He could feel all eyes on him as he spoke. "We know he will be meeting someone, and that the meeting will take place somewhere in these woods," he said, a red circle appearing on the map, signalling the area.

"We do not know exactly where said meeting will take place, but we have to be ready when the time comes. In this area of the woods," he said, waving his wand over the map, enlarging the circled part, "there are three large clearings, here, here, and one more here," he told the other Death Eaters, pointing at each area in time. "The rest of it is covered in wild forest, so it is safe to assume the meeting place will be one of the clearings. The problem is that, as you can see, they are too far away from one another, so we cannot split into all three locations, or we will not be able to reach the correct place with enough speed. The key to make this work is exactly that; we need to act fast, before Potter can call for support."

"If he will be there unprotected, then why do we need so many men there? Can't we just ambush him and kill him before he gets a chance to get help?" someone asked.

"That is the idea, and that is the reason why the first group will be a small one," he replied. "But for this to work, we must not underestimate the boy's sheer luck, and the Order of the Phoenix's response. The first group will reach the location before the boy does, and wait for him in the woods. Anti-Apparition Wards will be set on the location, in case they call for help, which means that, if the Order members find a way to get there, we will not be able to get support straight away. The Death Eaters that don't go on that first group will remain here, waiting to be called if needed. If that were the case, Apparating on the clearings would be safer than doing it in the woods," Severus explained, the silence in the room telling him he had their attention. "That means you will have to make your way, either on foot or using broomsticks, to the battlefield. I will give each of you a copy of this map; you will memorize it, and then pass it on to the ones that aren't here. We cannot risk any of the support groups getting lost in the woods, and we cannot lose this chance to finally get Potter."

"Do you really expect all this to be necessary?" someone asked.

"No, but we will be ready, just in case."

"Contact the Death Eaters that aren't here, tell them only what they need to know," Voldemort commanded, standing up.

With a wave of his wand, Severus created copies of the map, which the Death Eaters took as they, too, stood up.

"We will meet again on Thursday, and you will be informed of the details; for now, make sure everyone learns that map. I will not tolerate mistakes."

As everyone started to leave, Severus waved his wand over the map on the table, making it roll itself and then vanish. He was just about to leave the room as well when Voldemort stopped him.

"Yes, Master?"

"I need you to do some research for me, Severus."

"What kind of research?"

"Protection spells. I need one that is both rare and powerful; I do not want to risk anyone finding out how to get past it."

"What is it that you need to protect?"

"Does that make any difference?" Voldemort asked him.

"I have some old manuscripts in my possession, but to find the best spell for what you need, I have to know some characteristics of the object you wish to protect."

"Such as?"

"Weight, size, composition…"

"It is Nagini the spell is needed for."

"Nagini?"

"Yes."

"I am sure the protection at headquarters should be enough for…"

"Do not question me, Severus. Can you do it or not?"

"Of course, Master."

"Very well. Now go to the Order of the Phoenix's headquarters and find out what is going on. As I said before, I will not tolerate mistakes. Should something go wrong with this attack, the blame will fall solely on your shoulders. You know what the consequences of that will be for you."

--

Every hour that passed seemed to increase the tension at the Order's headquarters. There always seemed to be people wandering through the house, always hurried, always whispering among themselves, and many looking suspiciously at everyone they ran into, as if they believed they were being watched, spied. There was a feeling of both expectation and fear in the air that seemed to make them all even more nervous.

The training sessions certainly weren't helping the mood either. Kingsley had split the Order into smaller groups according to their power and skill, and then had organized the Aurors that were in the Order to instruct and train them, assigning them each a group to lead. They had especially prepared some of the rooms in the house for that purpose as well, and had worked out a tight schedule so that each group would have as much training as possible. They only had a few days before they would have to face Voldemort and his Death Eater, and every minute counted.

Knowing they would be on the front line when the time came, and that they were more prepared for it than most Order members, she, Harry and Ron had been assigned to the first group, and unlike most of the others, who split their time between learning new spells and curses and practising what they knew, they focused on duels.

The more powerful and experienced Order members were with them, and she was more than pleased to find the three of them were up to par when it came to duelling. They had a room all to themselves, a room where no one would disturb them, since they were the ones that trained almost constantly, and couldn't afford to share their space with other groups.

Kingsley, Mad Eye, Draco and the three of them were the constant occupants, although others would join them often, like Remus when he was back from the caves the werewolves were hiding in, the other group leaders when they weren't busy with the teaching, and even the other Weasleys, when for any reason they were in need of more opponents.

They were all working nonstop, but with none of them was this more obvious than with Harry. She just wasn't sure what she could do about it, or if she should even intervene.

Rolling on the floor to dodge a curse from Draco, she searched the room with her eyes, trying to find something she could use to her advantage; something like the tree to her left.

Knowing the battle would take place in a clearing near a forest, for that was what Severus had told the Order the previous day, before she had followed him out of headquarters, they had decided it would be useful to adapt the room they were training in to the conditions they would be in when the actual battle took place. They had magically enlarged the room, leaving a large clearing in the middle, surrounded by rocks and trees. It was the best way for them to really get ready, Mad Eye had told them, and so far it seemed to be proving right.

She felt the tree shake in front of her as it took Draco's curse, and she aimed her wand around the trunk, shooting back and hearing Draco deflect the curse. She was just about to fire again when the creak of the door being open distracted her.

"Meeting in five minutes," Mad Eye said from the doorway, and they all stopped what they were doing.

"Saved by the bell," Draco said, approaching her.

"Oh, yes, you were," she said, with a small smile, as she started walking for the door.

"That's not what…"

"Leave it, Malfoy," she heard Harry say. "There's no point arguing, you should know that by now."

"Yea, better not get her riled up on something, or you'll never hear the end of it," Ron added, after a moment.

"Would you two just knock it off?" she asked. "You make me sound awful."

"Shh, we're just trying to scare the ferret away," Harry said, in a mock whisper, knowing Draco could hear him.

"Oh, in that case," she whispered back, "Tell him about the time I cursed my friends into oblivion for not leaving me alone."

"That's never happened," Ron said.

"Want me to change that?" she asked him threateningly, smiling when she saw a flash of fear cross his eyes.

"We should hurry if we don't want to be late," Draco said, stepping into the hallway. She let Ron walk out too, and then held Harry back when he was leaving.

"Are you all right?" she asked.

"Sure."

"I know you must be worried about what's going to happen this Thursday, but you can't go on like this."

"Like what?"

"Harry, over the last few days you've barely eaten anything, and you haven't been sleeping enough either. All you do is train, and it's too much."

"I have to train, I have to be ready. I'm the one that's supposed to stop him, Hermione, and I have to be ready. I cannot let more people die because of me."

"It's not because of you, Harry. It is because of _him_ that people have died. It's because of Voldemort, not you."

"Look, I am all right, I just need more training, that's all."

"No, you need to slow down, and you need to keep your strength, I can't…"

"Will you two hurry up," Ron interrupted from down the hallway. "Everyone's waiting for you."

"Just give us a minute, Ronald."

"Just hurry, will you?" she heard him mutter as he walked away.

"I'm just worried about you, Harry."

"I know that, but you don't have to be."

"All right, let's make a deal," she said. "I promise to stop worrying if you promise to take care of yourself. And that means eating and sleeping enough."

"If Mrs Weasley could hear you she'd be so proud she'd start crying. You sound just like her," he joked.

"I'm serious Harry."

"I know. I'll eat, and I'll sleep, but I'll train too. Now let's go, before they send Ron back to get us," he added, before she could protest anymore.

The library, the place where they held most meetings lately, was already full of people, apparently all waiting for just the two of them. There were no unoccupied chairs left, so she and Harry hurriedly walked over to where Ron and Draco were standing, by the window, next to some Aurors looking at them as though they had just lost the most valuable minutes of their entire lives waiting for them.

"Thank you for joining us," came Severus' sarcastic voice, and she had to struggle to hide the smile that threatened to touch her lips when she heard him.

"Sorry," she muttered, feeling the group of Aurors glare at her.

"As many of you already know," Severus started, after a moment, "we will finally face the Dark Lord two days from now, although I do not yet know the exact time or location. I do know, however, that it will take place in a forest, a few miles north of Cheviot Hills. We will use the woods around it to hide, and ambush the Death Eaters when they get there.

"I have been informed you have been split into groups for training purposes," he continued. "All of you will remain in those groups for the battle. Each group will be taken to a different area when the time comes, and will have to remain unnoticed until needed. Anti-Apparition wards will be set on the area as soon as the Dark Lord arrives, so all of you will have to carry a Portkey for emergencies. It will be the only way out.

"I cannot stress enough just how important being ready is. This battle might very well be our only chance to defeat the Dark Lord, and failure will cost much more than our lives. Take the training seriously, and make sure you are ready for anything. The Death Eaters will not hesitate to kill any of you, and the only way to defeat them is to use the same kind of magic. There will be no room for doubt, or for weak spells meant only to momentarily stop, disarm, or weaken the enemy. You have to kill them, or they will kill you."

She heard a few murmurs around the room, some agreeing with what Severus had said, others horrified at the idea. But he was right, the only way to defeat Voldemort was using the same weapons he used, and that meant killing.

Just as her eyes were searching the room, her gaze jumping from one face to the other, trying to read their expressions, she noticed the door open and close, and then heard Molly gasp and whisper, "Bill."

Her eyes immediately fell on the wizard, who stepped inside and turned to Severus, ignoring all the attention he was getting from the people in the room. She hadn't seen him in a few weeks, and all she knew was that he had been sent away on a mission with Charlie.

"What are you doing here?" Severus asked him, coldly. "It was your brother I called."

"He couldn't come, so he sent me instead. I will go back and tell him whatever it is that you need."

"Very well," he said. "The rest of you may go back to training."

Slowly, everyone left the room, stopping for a moment in the hallways to talk about what Severus had just told them, and then heading with their respective groups to the training rooms. Only Severus, Bill and Kingsley stayed inside.

She would have wanted to stay there too, find out what was going on, but she knew she couldn't. Instead, she waited for Severus to finish and leave the library, along with Molly and Arthur, who were waiting for their son to come out.

After almost fifteen minutes, she was beginning to worry, wondering what was taking them so long. Thankfully, the door finally opened and Bill stepped outside, soon followed by Severus.

As Bill walked over to where his parents were, she walked down the hallway toward the entrance, following Severus. She knew the three Weasleys were distracted, and Kingsley was still in the library, so they wouldn't notice. She only hoped no one else would see her.

"Wait," she whispered, as Severus reached the door, and he instantly turned around.

"What is it?" he asked, his eyes searching behind her for any sign of company. Once he was sure they were alone, he walked to her.

"I just…any news on the plans for Thursday?" she asked, not sure what else to say.

"I have to go to the forest I mentioned today and decide what the best place for the battle is. There are three or four clearings that could do, but I have to check the surroundings to see if there's enough room for the Order to hide."

"Do you want me to go with you? Maybe I can help."

"No, the Dark Lord might have sent some Death Eaters there, we cannot risk them seeing you."

"Do we really stand a chance?" she asked, and saw him hesitate, his eyes once more searching their surroundings for unwanted company.

"If everything goes as planed, we should," he replied. "But when the time comes, the Order has to act fast, killing as many Death Eaters as possible before the others arrive."

"What happened in there? What did you want Bill and Charlie for?"

"I found out today that the Dark Lord will have Inferi ready as well."

"What?" she gasped.

"Everything is ready for the Awakening, and I don't know how many there will be."

"If he uses them, then we won't stand a chance. They are more than us as it is; we cannot fight more, especially not Inferi."

"That is why I tried to contact Charlie Weasley. As you know, he has been working in a reservation in Romania for some years now."

"So?" she asked, not really understanding where he was going.

"What is the best way to defeat Inferi? What harms them and scares them most?" he asked.

"Fire, but…" She gasped loudly when she realized just what he was planning. "But can they be controlled?"

"He believes so."

"It would take Charlie too long to get them here, though, and hiding them in the forest would be next to impossible."

"I am aware of that, and the necessary arrangements are being made."

"If that works, do you think we have a chance of winning?"

"I believe we do."

"When are you…"

"Hermione," someone called, interrupting them, and she turned around to see who it was. After a second, she saw Kingsley walking down the hallway towards them.

"Harry's looking for you," he said, then stopped walking when he realized Severus was standing right next to her. "I thought you'd left," he told him.

"Not yet," Severus replied. She was surprised to see the look on Kingsley's face. His usually gentle expression had turned deadly serious as he almost glared at Severus.

"I will see you later then, Hermione," Severus said, surprising her with the gentle tone in his voice, and more so by his actions.

Taking her hand, he slowly turned her to face him, looked at Kingsley for a second, and then leaned down and kissed her, slowly, tenderly, his hand buried in her hair as he pulled her to him.

She could feel her legs shake slightly as she gave in to the kiss, responding in kind, forgetting everything but the man holding her. But all too soon he broke the kiss, his eyes lingering on hers for a moment, a wicked gleam on them as he smirked and turned to Kingsley.

"Shacklebolt," he said, nodding slightly and turning to her for one last short kiss, whispering, "goodbye," against her lips before opening the door and leaving.

"Harry's waiting for you," Kingsley said after a moment, and she forced herself to turn to him, feeling her cheeks burn. "He wanted to train with you," he finished, his tone even, not angry but not friendly either. With one last look at her, he, too, walked away.

She couldn't believe what Severus had just done, kissing her like that in front of Kingsley. A part of her was angry, knowing he had only done it to infuriate Kingsley, but the other part didn't care, as long as she could have him. It might have been wrong on Severus to do it, but she had to admit she had loved every minute of it.

Her heart was beating furiously, her legs still weak as she slowly walked down the hallway, towards their training room; her lips tingled at the memory of the kiss, and she hoped she'd see him again soon.


	59. the beginning of the end

The shouts from outside the kitchen startled her, and hastily leaving the fork on the table, she drew her wand and threw the door open, ready for anything. Well, almost anything. With all that shouting, she could have expected bad news, perhaps even a surprise Death Eater attack; what she certainly wouldn't have expected to find were two Order members standing on the hallway, wands aimed at one another as they yelled and threatened to curse the other into oblivion.

The tension at headquarters had been increasing exponentially, and now that they were barely a day away from the battle, most seemed ready to explode.

"What's going on?" she asked, her gaze moving from the two shouting wizards to those around them, trying to calm them down.

"You did it on purpose, you were trying to kill her!" one of the wizards shouted at the other, red sparks flying from his wand as he spoke.

"Have you gone crazy? Why would I want to kill her?" the other yelled back.

"You are one of them; you're trying to kill us all before the battle. But I won't let you; I'll kill you like the treacherous bastard that you are."

"Enough," Kingsley's voice boomed, startling them all. "Lower your wands right now," he commanded, but neither wizard did as told. "Lower them this instant or I will be forced to curse you both and I promise it will not be nice," he said, his tone firm as he kept his wand aimed at both men, ready to fire.

"I won't lower my wand until he does," one of the wizards said.

"If you think you can trick me into putting my wand away you're wrong. He's just waiting for a chance to curse me," the other said, glancing at Kingsley but keeping his wand firmly in front of him.

"Lower your wands now, I will not say it again," Kingsley said calmly but firmly.

She wished she could say that had been the only outbreak that day, but it would be a lie. The closer the deadline was, the more on edge everyone seemed to be, and calming them back down was getting harder every time. It was only a matter of time before someone got really hurt. It was bad enough that they had to face Voldemort and his Death Eaters; they certainly didn't need any more fights inside the Order.

His hand moved so fast she didn't even realize what was going on until both wizards' wands were on Kingsley's hand, his own wand still aimed at them, showing everyone one of the reasons why he was head of the Auror department.

"Now tell me what happened," he told the shocked wizards one of which was still looking at his hand, as if not understanding what had just happened.

"He cursed my wife," the other said, angrily. "He's working for…" he started screaming, but a flick of Kingsley's wand instantly silenced him, his face going red as he tried to scream.

"You will calm down, and explained what happened without screaming, or I will be forced to send you to the Ministry and keep you detained. Now will you tell me what happened?" he asked, and when the wizard nodded, he lifted the Silencing Charm.

"He tried to kill my wife."

"That is crazy. He's gone insane," the other wizard said to Kingsley.

"Did anyone see what happened?" he asked, looking around at the small crowd that had gathered around them. "Anyone?"

"We were training," one of the Aurors explained. "Johnston here was duelling Byrne's wife, and she failed to deflect one of the curses."

"Oh, right, blame it on her! She's in the infirmary right now, with her arm burned!"

"It was an accident," Johnston told Kingsley, his tone almost pleading.

"It was not! He was trying to kill her, I know he was!"

"What do you think?" Kingsley asked the Auror.

"We were practising, it was just an accident."

"That's a lie!" Byrne yelled, making Kingsley turned to him again.

"You will calm down, I will not say it again." he told him firmly. "Tonks, get everyone in the library; as for you two, follow me," he said, walking into one of the few empty rooms down the hallway.

"What does he want us all in the library for?" she asked, Tonks.

"No idea, but whatever it is, we'll find out soon. Help me call everyone?"

"Sure," she said, making her way down the hallway, knocking on every door and calling everyone that hadn't been watching the fight.

After almost half an hour, everyone at headquarters was inside the library, which they'd had to enlarge slightly to fit them all, and impatiently awaiting Kingsley.

"I understand we are all tense, and worried," Kingsley said, as he entered the room and closed the door behind him, everyone quickly falling silent to listen, "but this situation cannot continue. We have only one more day to prepare, and we can not spend our time fighting each other. A battle larger than any of us have witnessed so far will take place, and we will all be part of it. We need every single witch and wizard there, to fight with us, if we want to stand a chance. Over the last two days, we have had dozens of incidents, and a few moments ago one of these discussions almost ended badly. We cannot afford to fight each other; we will only be giving the enemy a large advantage if we do. We have to be united, and we have to be focused on what's ahead of us. Remember what you are fighting for," he said, his gaze searching every face in the room, making sure they were all listening.

"Everyone here believes in the Order, in what it represents, and is willing to risk their very lives to defend it, to leave a better world for the generations to come," he continued. "We are all scared, afraid of what will happen, and it is only natural, but if we let those fears take over, then we are lost."

"With that said, I have to warn you," he said seriously, after a moment of silence. "I will not tolerate another incident like today's. If you have a problem with someone, you either come to me, or you wait until after the battle. If I, or anyone else, have to stop a fight, I promise I will detain whoever is involved, and make sure they are sent to Azkaban. Is that understood?" he asked, and a few nodded.

"There are some potions that can help you remain calm in the infirmary, but only use them if they are extremely necessary. Go back to what you were doing now, there is much that still needs to be done," he finished, and was the first one to leave the room.

Not feeling hungry anymore, she silently followed the crowd out of the library and headed back to the main training room, finding Draco there already.

"How did you get here so fast?"

"I couldn't stand another second in that room, and left as soon as possible. I don't need speeches on how great the Order is, and how we should all be friends."

"Why are you here, Draco?"

"Where else could I be?" he asked with a serious expression on his face as he looked at her.

"You could have left, gone somewhere safe."

"There's nowhere safe for me anymore."

"And still, instead of just hiding or running, you are helping us. Why?"

"You don't know?" he asked her, with a strange expression on his face.

"No," she replied, suddenly afraid to hear his reasons.

"Yes, you do. You just don't want to admit it," he replied, tilting his head to the side as he watched her with an intensity in his eyes she hadn't seen before.

"So, up for some more training?" she asked, trying to change the subject.

"Don't want to wait for Potter and the Weasel?"

"They're having lunch."

"A little late for lunch, isn't it?"

"What's the matter, Malfoy, afraid to duel a girl?" she asked, drawing her wand.

Instead of replying, he smirked and reached for his wand, making the door close with a wave before aiming it at her.

"Whenever you're ready, Granger," he said, his eyes shining at the prospect of a duel.

Without saying a word, she threw the first spell, taking two quick steps to the side as he blocked it, and sending another one while he was distracted.

The Stinging Hex hit Draco on the leg, and she laughed out loud when he yelped and jump on one foot.

"That was mean, Granger," he said, throwing a curse at her she easily deflected as he stretched his leg a few times and tentatively stood on it again.

"Need me to take you to the infirmary?" she asked, in mock worry, and he smirked back at her, throwing her another hex she barely missed.

"Think you're funny?" he asked her, moving his wand to the side and firing a Severing Charm at the tree next to her, cutting a large branch that hit her on the head, distracting her enough for him to hit her with a Sponge-Knees Curse.

Before she even knew what was happening she fell to the floor, the sound of Draco's laughter reaching her ears.

With a wicked smirk, she turned to him and whispered, "Tarantallegra," laughing again at the surprise on his face as his legs started moving of their own accord.

"Finite Incantatem," she muttered, and slowly got up, giving Draco time to end the spell affecting his legs before attacking again.

"That was a low shot, Granger," Draco said, as he managed to stand still again.

"Want to bring in the big guns?"

"Think you're ready for that?" he taunted, aiming his wand at her again.

"Try me," she said. "Expelliarmus!"

"I thought you said big guns," he laughed, easily deflecting her curse.

"Very well, you asked for it," she said with a smirk, firing at the tree beside him, like he had before, and using the distraction to run out of the clearing, using the shadows and tree trunks for cover as she looked for a better angle.

Practising duelling with one another had been a good idea, and everyone's fighting skills seemed to be improving thanks to that. It was a good way to be prepared for what was coming, not to mention a way to keep most distracted. As long as they were focused on improving and getting ready, they wouldn't think of exactly what it was they were getting ready for, and what it would mean.

Using a spell to muffle her footsteps, she walked around the centre of the room, using the trees for cover, trying to get close enough to him to aim. He was standing with his back to her, apparently searching the surroundings for her, and she took the chance, stepping closer and lifting her wand, when the sound of footsteps right behind her startled her.

She felt the tip of a wand against her neck, and then someone move closer behind her, until she could feel their breath against her ear.

"You didn't know that one, did you?" Draco whispered, and she frowned in confusion. If Draco was standing behind her, then why could she still see him right in front of her? "Speechless? That's an interesting effect," he said, and she felt him flick his wand by her neck, making the figure in front of her disappear.

"How did you do that?" she asked, watching the faint mist the reflection had left behind.

"It's a Mirror Charm, slightly modified. Extremely useful, as you can see," he replied, pressing the wand against her neck.

"Can you teach me how to do it?"

"You'll have to earn it," he said, and even though she couldn't see his face, she knew he was smirking.

Trying not to let him see the movement, she carefully twisted her arm around her back, trying to aim her wand at his chest. The curse she used was one he had taught her, and one she had disliked the minute she heard its effects. Who would have thought it would end up being so useful?

It had been created to use as torture, Draco had told her, centuries ago, although it, as most of the curses he had taught them, had been outlawed long ago. The curse made the victim's lungs swell, not only causing them pain, but also making it impossible for them to breath.

As she had expected, the second the curse hit him he stumbled backwards, gasping for breath and letting go of her. With a painful expression, he fell to the floor, the wand falling from his hand and clattering on the floor.

With a triumphant smile, she walked over where he was, towering over him as she aimed her wand at his chest again and lifted the curse, watching him take deep breaths as he scowled at her.

"That was cheap," he said, as he tried to get up, but she aimed her wand at his chest again and moved her feet to his shoulder, pushing him back down.

"You said big guns," she replied innocently. "Now, have I earned the right to learn that charm?"

"You didn't play fair."

"Who decides what's fair? I had to beat you, and I did. How long did it take me, fifteen minutes in all?"

Narrowing his eyes, he slowly replied, "What makes you think you beat me?" before moving both his hands to her ankle and pushing her away, turning around so that he managed to kick her other leg, making her fall to the floor and drop her own wand.

Fast as a snake, he rolled over, moving on top of her, his hands holding hers when she tried to fight him. He could fight without a wand too? Well, this one was full of surprises.

"Now, what were you saying about beating me?" he asked with a smirk, holding her as she tried to struggle, but she was a fighter, and loved a challenge. She wouldn't stop until she turned the situation around and beat him.

Glancing around, she saw her wand lying a few feet away and yanked her right arm free, trying to reach for her wand first, and to Summon it to her when it was clear it was too far away, but he merely laughed at her attempt and pinned her arm again.

"You may be good when you have your wand, but you have to know how to defend yourself when you don't have it, as well," he said. "Now, admit I am better than you and I'll let you go," he said, the arrogant look back on his face as he watched her struggle some more, unwilling to admit defeat.

"All right, fine," she finally sighed after a second, and he loosened his hold on her, just as she had expected. With all the strength she could muster, she pushed him back with one hand, while she fisted the other and launched forward, hitting the side of his face and making him groan in pain and fall back.

Reaching for her wand, she pushed him back before he could get up and moved on top of him, moving one of her knees to his chest to keep him down.

"You were saying…" she muttered, pleased with herself. "Now, as you can see I am clearly a better duellist. Unlike you, I do not care if you admit it or not, I know I am better," she told him, with a broad smile. "So, seeing as I clearly beat you, quite easily, I might add," she said, just to see him scowl, "will you teach me that spell?"

"Lower your wand first," he said. "And if you'd move that knee from my ribs, I would appreciate it."

Grudgingly, she moved so that she was kneeling beside him, and once again, he tricked her, moving his hand behind her neck and pushing her to the side, making her lose her balance and fall; and like before, he rolled on top of her and held her down, laughing loudly.

"You should know better than to trust your opponent," he said, when she scowled. He had tricked her just like she had tricked him only moments before; how had she not seen it coming? "As for the spell," he added, resting his body against hers, "I said you'd have to earn the right to learn it, I didn't say how."

Without giving her time to react, he leaned down and kissed her, cursing and moving back when she tried to bite his lip.

"What do you think you are you doing?"

"Earlier you asked me why I was here," he said, his lips still close to hers, but he didn't try to kiss her again. "What can I say to make you understand?"

"Make me understand what?" she asked.

"That I'm here because of you, Hermione," he said, and the honesty in his eyes hurt her.

"That can't be the real reason, Draco," she said softly. "You barely know me."

"Is that what you think?" he asked, leaning closer.

She was so focused on what was going on that she only realized they weren't alone when someone cleared their throat, and both their heads snapped to the side, eyes wide when they realized Moody, Remus, Tonks, Harry and Ron were there. Then she heard Severus' voice from beside them, and she gasped.

"If it doesn't interfere with your personal affairs," he said, coldly, "we are holding a meeting in the library; perhaps you would like to join us, when you are done," he added, his eyes on Draco most of the time, and then he turned around and left, followed by the others. Only Harry and Ron stayed behind.

"What's this?" Ron asked angrily, bringing her back to reality.

"Let go," she said, when she realized Draco was still holding her hands together, and he got up without a word and offered her his hand, which she took.

"We were practising," she replied, trying to sound nonchalant, even though she knew she was probably blushing under her friends' stares.

"Practising? What exactly?"

"Granger wanted me to teach her a charm, and I told her if she wanted to learn it, she'd have to beat me first."

"And I would have, if you hadn't cheated," she replied, turning to Draco, glad he was giving her a way out.

"We do not fight under Duelling rules, Granger," he said. "We are getting ready for war; everything goes."

"Not long ago you were claiming I'd cheated," she replied, walking to the door. Ron and Harry seemed to be too surprised at both what they had walked in to and their conversation to utter another word, and she wouldn't give them a chance. "We better hurry, we don't want to be late," she said. "Don't think you're getting off that easy," she whispered at Draco as they walked towards the library. "You had no right to do what you did."

"I'm glad to see you could spare a moment," Severus said, as soon as they opened the door to the library. "Sit."

She wanted to talk to him, explain what had happened with Draco, but she knew that wasn't the time, not with everyone in there, so she remained silent and took a seat. A quick glance told her the only people in the room were the heads of each group, Ron, Harry, Draco and her. Following the others' gazes, she saw there was a large map on the table.

"This, as you can see, is a map of the forest in Cheviot Hills. Like I said before, there are a few clearings in it; I went there and personally viewed each of them. This," he said, pointing at one of them, in the centre of the map, "is the one that gives us the most advantage, and it is the one where we will set the false meeting. The four of you," he said, looking at her, Harry, Ron and Draco in turn, "will Apparate to the clearing itself and wait there. By the time you arrive, the Dark Lord and fifteen Death Eaters will be there already, under the cover of the trees. Anti-Apparition wards will be set as soon as you arrive, so the other groups will have to be ready before then. Lupin, how many werewolves can we count on?"

"Twenty eight at least; probably around forty or more, if we manage to convince one more pack to join us."

"There are less than 24 hours left, there is no time for convincing anyone."

"There will be a meeting tonight, after midnight; all the pack leaders will be there. They will discuss the situation. The packs that were attacked by the Death Eaters this last weekend will join the Order, and there is a good chance we can convince the other packs to do so as well."

"Contact me as soon as you hear anything," he said, and Remus nodded. "Werewolves will be able to move better deep into the forest, so we will use that to our advantage. They will wait here," Severus said, marking in red a point between that clearing and the one closest. "A second group of Death Eaters, much larger, will be waiting here for the Dark Lord's call," he continued, circling the other clearing. "There will be maybe fifty Death Eaters in all. Do you think they can be taken care of, even if the other packs won't join us?"

"This clearing is rather small," Remus said, and Severus nodded. "Will we have to wait until they are alerted, or will we attack them while they wait?"

"You would have to wait until the Dark Lord attacks Potter, but they should be reduced before he calls for help."

"Then yes, we can do it," Remus assured him.

"Good," Severus said, waving his wand over the circles he had drawn, making them turn blue. "Another three groups will be waiting nearby, here, here, and over here as well," he continued, pointing at the two remaining clearings and another spot among the trees. "We can take care of the ones at the clearings in very much the same way," he said, turning to Kingsley. "How many groups have you formed?"

"Seventeen, separated according to their skill."

"And how many people in each group?"

"It varies. The weakest groups have about fifteen members each, there are five of those. The medium levels are split into another nine. Those groups are larger, around twenty members each. The remaining three have about fifty members in all."

"That leaves us with roughly three hundred people, against over four hundred Death Eaters. Let's see," Severus said, his gaze locked on the map once more, "I can make sure the groups on this clearing stay at approximately fifty wizards each. That makes about one hundred more Death Eaters that can be taken care of before they get to the main battle," he continued, almost as if he were speaking to himself, trying to sort things out. "We can keep our teams hidden in the woods, and have them all attack at once; that should avoid one group moving to help another. So," he muttered, "how weak exactly are the weakest groups?"

"They can manage with defensive magic, and can use curses and hexes as well, although not the most complex ones, at least not with sufficient strength."

"But they should be able to deal with a Death Eater, harm them, if not kill them?"

"Yes."

"All right, then. Two of the lower level groups and one medium would make just about fifty Order members, against another fifty Death Eaters. With surprise on their side, they should be able to at least contain them, stop them from getting to the Dark Lord," he said, and Kingsley nodded. "The Death Eaters in the woods will be a bigger problem," he continued.

"Another group of fifty, you said?"

"Yes, that is the best I can offer, without risking arising suspicion."

"What if you send the most powerful groups to them?"

"No, those groups will be needed in the main battle. Three medium level groups; that should make about sixty wizards. It would be a close fight, the Death Eaters will move in the woods with more ease, and they are more experienced."

"We can change the training rooms, start practicing on rooms that imitate the woods."

"Like the room I saw earlier?"

"Yes."

"That would be helpful. So, that leaves three groups for each clearing, and three more for the woods," Severus said. "It would be wise to set up Anti-Apparition wards as soon as the Death Eaters arrive, but we cannot risk alerting them. The heads of each group would have to do it."

Everyone in the room was silently looking at him, clinging to his every word, trying to take in every part of his plan, and she could see the awe and admiration on their faces. Severus was clearly a good strategist.

"We still have one low level group, four medium and the three others. As for the Death Eaters, there's still approximately two hundred, if I am not mistaken. Those Death Eaters will remain at headquarters until called. Unfortunately, there is no way to intercept the Dark Lord's call, or to stop it in any way. As soon as he calls for reinforcements, they will know."

"What will happen then?" Kingsley asked, as Severus waved his wand over the three areas that he had already taken care of.

"An Apparition point will be established, away from the main battlefield. I cannot set it in the same clearing as the other groups will be waiting, or they will know something is wrong as soon as the Dark Lord summons them and they find Anti-Apparition wards set."

"So how will we deal with them?"

"There is a small clearing over here," Severus said, marking yet another spot on the map. "You cannot see it here, but it is. They will all Apparate there and then go to the Dark Lord. From the moment the four of them Apparate to the clearing," he said, glancing at the other end of the table, where Harry and Ron were sitting, "to the moment when the Dark Lord realises he needs reinforcements we will have only a few minutes. If he summons only the groups already on location first, as is planned, then that should give us some more time, but you cannot count on it."

"Once the Death Eaters at headquarters are alerted and they Apparate to this clearing, the real battle will begin. Some of them will be on foot, and some will have broomsticks. There will be too many of them to even attempt an ambush; it would be pointless, and virtual suicide. The only way to go, once it happens, will be to fight them, one by one, on the field. By then, our numbers should be even. Once the Order members defeat the Death Eaters on the clearings and woods, they will get here as well, and that should work to out advantage."

"If they defeat them, you mean," one of the Aurors said.

"If you do not think such a task can be achieved, then perhaps the battlefield is not the place for you."

"It looks to me as if you are sending them to their deaths."

"It is war, and death is certainly a possibility. I am, however, giving them better odds." Without giving the Auror time to reply, he continued. "The most important thing here will be to gain time; to delay the Dark Lord's summons as much as possible. The only way to achieve that is to make him believe assistance is not needed. As I said before, the group that will accompany the Dark Lord will be a small one. You should have one of the top groups ready to attack as soon as he arrives. He will be alerted, but will probably not think it a set up, and if it is only one group attacking, he will not call for backup right away. The remaining groups should stay in the surrounding area, only intervening if absolutely necessary until the other Death Eaters arrive."

"So we should set the other seven groups around here," Kingsley said, pointing at the area surrounding the clearing."

"Indeed. Just make sure they are not seen before it is time. Can you make the arrangements?" Severus asked him.

"Yes."

"Modifying all training rooms would be a good idea as well."

"I will take care of it."

"I will not be able to return here before the battle; if you have any questions, this is the time."

"Everything is clear," Kingsley replied, waving his wand over the map to create a copy.

"Very well, then. You may all return to your training sessions."

As everyone got up, she took a step back, hoping she would be able to stay behind and talk to Severus. He had avoided meeting her gaze all through the meeting.

"Draco," Severus said, as the others left. "There is a matter we need to discuss. Alone," he added briskly, when he realized she was trying to stay behind.

Without any other option, she followed Harry and Ron out of the room, telling them she was too tired and needed some rest when they asked her to train with them. She sneaked into the kitchen, busying herself with some coffee as she waited for those that had been in the meeting to go back to their groups, leaving her alone. She sat on the edge of the kitchen table, the only spot from where she could see if someone walked down the hallway towards the entrance door.

The ticking of the clock on the wall drove her crazy as she waited half an hour, then another. Her coffee had been cold for a long time, but she couldn't care less. There were no sounds coming from the library, and that worried her. What would he want with Draco? Last time, Severus had almost gotten him killed.

"What are you doing here, dear?" Molly's voice startled her.

"I was just getting some rest."

"You kids have been working too hard," she said, pursing her lips as she went about the kitchen, gathering what she needed to start cooking dinner. "You are still so young; you shouldn't be exposed to things like these."

"We'll be all right," Hermione assured her, for what seemed to be the hundredth time, as she got up and helped Molly fix dinner, all the time paying attention to the hallway, waiting for Severus to leave.

As soon as they noticed the smell of food, the kitchen began to fill with hungry witches and wizards, all talking loudly and making it impossible for her to keep paying attention to the library and its occupants. It wasn't until she actually bumped into Draco as she was trying to carry a tray full of food to the table, almost dropping it all, that she realized they had left already.

"Where is he?" she whispered to Draco, as soon as she left the tray on the table.

"Where's who?"

"You know who I'm talking about," she said, as her eyes searched the room, trying to see if he was there.

"He's gone," Draco whispered back.

"What?"

"He left a few minutes ago."

Cursing under her breath, her eyes searched the room again, noticing she was catching a few curious glances. She wanted to go after him, but she knew she couldn't just leave; she would have to wait a little longer.

Taking a plate and a glass of water, she sat next to Ginny.

"I'm going to leave soon," she whispered, and Ginny turned to her, confused. "I'll finish this and say goodbye. Then I will go upstairs, get my things and leave."

"Where?"

"That doesn't matter. I'm only telling you this because I don't want you to worry when you go to bed and don't find me there, and because I don't want you to call anyone for help."

"I don't think I can do that," Ginny replied after a moment. "It could be dangerous, you can't just leave like that."

"I will be all right, but I have to go," she said. "And you won't tell anyone about it. I kept my mouth shut when you asked me to," she said seriously, reminding her of the times she had caught her trying to sneak into Harry's bedroom, and the time she had caught them both sneaking out of the bathroom in the middle of the night. When Ginny blushed, she knew she would be safe; no one would know she had left.

It took her a little longer than she had hoped, but finally she had managed to leave the others in the kitchen and make her way to the bedroom, changing out of her training clothes and silently walking back downstairs.

She Apparated to his house in Ireland, the place where he had taken her so many times, and, hoping he would be there and alone, she carefully opened the door, wand at the ready for any unexpected occurrence. But the house seemed empty.

She slowly walked down the main hallway, glancing inside the kitchen and library, finding them empty. It wasn't until she started walking up the stairs that she heard the sound of water running. It sounded like a shower.

She made her way to the bathroom and stopped before the door. As much as she wanted to walk in, she knew it would be rude, especially if he was mad at her, so instead she turned around and opened the door to his bedroom, deciding it would be a good place to wait.

But as soon as she opened the door she felt a wet hand wrap around her wrist, pulling her inside the dark room and then pushing her against the wall.

"What took you so long?" Severus' voice rasped against her ear, as his fingers tightened around her hips.

"Wh-what?" she asked, startled.

"What. Took. You. So. Long?" he repeated, nibbling on her neck after each word, making it hard for her to focus.

"Everyone was there, I couldn't just leave right away," she said, moaning when he moved his hands up her hips, slowly slipping them under her shirt.

To say that she was surprised by his behaviour would be an understatement. After the way he had refused to look at her during the Order meeting, and the icy tone in his voice when he had spoken to her, she had, at least, expected to find him angry at her, or perhaps ignoring her; she certainly hadn't expected him to jump her like that on sight. Not that she minded, though.

As his lips easily found all the sensitive spots on her neck, she felt his hands move around her, caressing her skin, pulling her closer to him.

"I know you'd told me not to come here," she started, but he quickly interrupted.

"I knew you'd come," he whispered, his voice low and raspy made her shiver.

He lifted her arms and took her shirt off, then leaned against her, and only when she felt his chest against her, wet like his hand had been, did she realize he was only wearing a towel, wrapped around his hips. Apparently he had just finished taking a shower when she'd arrived. Without thinking, she pulled him even closer to her, loving the feel of his skin against hers.

"What you saw, with Draco," she started in a whisper, needing to explain things, but not wanting him to stop what he was doing, "it wasn't what it looked like."

"I know," was his only reply, as his hands moved between them, his fingers easily undoing her jeans.

"You do? Then why…?"

"Because I knew you were going to try to explain things to me right there," he said, "in front of everyone. As you might imagine, I did not think that would be a wise decision," he explained, as he pushed her jeans down her legs, leaving her in only her underwear.

"But…" she started, but his lips silenced her as he stood again, pulling her closer to him, his hands caressing her as if he hadn't touched her in weeks, his tongue easily taking control of the kiss, making her body melt into his.

But when he broke the kiss, she started to ask another question, and he groaned in frustration, pushing his hips firmly against hers and biting on her neck before whispering huskily into her ear.

"What do I have to do to make you stop talking?"

She couldn't help but shiver at his words, at the feel of him hard against her, at what both those things implied.

"I'm sure you can think of something," she replied, in the same husky tone, hearing him laugh against her ear as he lowered his hands to her hips, pulling her up and making her wrap her arms and legs around him.

Kissing her heatedly, he slowly turned around with her in his arms and walked the short distance that separated them from the bed, lowering her on it and then lying on top of her.

She felt his lips leave hers and trail down, searing her skin as they moved. His fingers moved behind her and easily unclasped her bra, taking it off her and blindly throwing it aside, never stopping his ministrations.

His movements were slow, tender, as he touched her, kissed her, bit it was hard for her to acknowledge anything with him so close. Actually, there was little she could think of, or even do, other than moan and arch against his hands and lips, against his body, wanting to feel more of him, and to make him feel the same way he was making her feel.

As soon as the bra was out of his way, he took one of her nipples between his lips, teasing her as his hands moved down, pushing her knickers down her legs and discarded them as he had the rest of her clothes, leaving her lying naked in front of him.

She gasped when she felt his teeth on her skin, nibbling and biting lightly, and she buried her hands in his wet hair, pulling him up for another heated kiss. She wrapped her legs around his hips and pulled him to her, noticing he still had the towel wrapped around him and pushing it down with her heels.

She heard him laugh softly at her actions, moving one hand to her hips to stop them from thrusting forward while the other wondered between them, his fingers teasing her clit for a moment before slipping inside her.

"So wet," he groaned into her ear, slowly moving his fingers inside her. It didn't take long for the rhythm to increase, or for the tension to start building inside her, and she felt her muscles tense as he started moving his fingers faster, his thumb rubbing her clit in just the right way, driving her crazy.

"Please," she moaned, tightening her legs around him, trying to push him closer. She wanted more, needed more; she needed him inside her. She didn't think she could hold much longer. He was touching her as if he already knew exactly how to please her, how to draw every moan and sigh from her body, how to give her as much pleasure as she could take in a matter of seconds, and every single movement caused the desired effect.

His lips found hers again, and he silenced her pleads with a heated kiss as he kept moving his fingers, driving her to the edge and then pushing her over. She screamed his name into the kiss, biting on his lip as she came, her muscles contracting around his fingers as her body shook with pleasure.

Before she could even know what was happening, the hand inside her was gone, leaving her painfully empty as it moved between them, yanking the towel still between them away, finally letting her feel him hard against her.

Then he was pushing inside her, filling her so deliciously, gritting his teeth in an attempt to control himself as her muscles tightened around him, driving him deeper.

It was as if everything was happening in slow motion, every touch, every caress seemed to last longer, every thrust seemed to go deeper. There was a tenderness in his touch she couldn't remember ever feeling before, and she instinctively acted the same way, allowing herself to follow her desires, to kiss him and touch him as she wanted.

There was something there, lurking in the back of their minds, she could tell, and it made her uneasy. They would be marching to a battle in only a few hours, and everything felt surreal, but at that moment she had the feeling he was saying goodbye, somehow. The possibility of any of them surviving the battle was slim; the possibility of the two of them living was even slimmer. She knew that, and perhaps that was the reason why she felt that way, but she decided to push those thoughts away. If that would be her last night with him, then she would enjoy it. She would not let fear and doubt spoil the moment.

"Stop thinking," he whispered into her ear, as he moved, and as she tilted her head her eyes found his.

It was amazing how those black, usually cold eyes could now hold that much emotion. But he wouldn't put words to it; she didn't think he ever would. He showed her what he felt through his actions, and she did the same, holding him to her, feeling his hard breathing against her neck, feeling his heart beat against her chest.

They moved as one, drawing the pleasure out as time went by; maybe hours, maybe only minutes, she had no idea. She knew nothing at that moment other than him. They kissed, and they moved against the other, and right then and there, nothing else mattered.

Their movements became faster as the tension built, their breathings deeper as they tried to hold back, to make it last longer. And finally she couldn't take anymore, and with his name on her lips she came, her body mercilessly pulling him with her. His lips were on her neck, muffling the sounds he made, silencing the words she wasn't sure he had groaned. She was far too gone to notice much. At that moment she could only feel the pleasure he was giving her, feel his body inside and around her, exploding like hers.

As her breathing slowed and her heart calmed, she lay on her side, her head resting on his shoulder. Her hand was on his chest, letting her feel his heart slow down, the constant beats lulling her into sleep. But she didn't want to fall asleep, she wanted to stay awake, to make the moment last as long as she could.

Her eyes were on the window, and on the sky beyond. A clock had chimed not long before, as midnight had hit, as Thursday had arrived. The day had come already; now it was only a matter of hours.

"What is it?" she heard him ask softly.

"It is today," she replied, just as softly.

"I know," he said, his hand moving to her head, his fingers threading through her hair, making her feel calm, safe. "It will be all right," he whispered after a moment, sensing her fears.

"Will it?" she asked softly, tilting her head so she could meet his eyes. "Most of us are probably going to die," she said, "and what will there be left for those that survive?"

"We will win," he said, the certainty in his statement and in his eyes calming her somewhat. "We will win the battle, the Dark Lord will be defeated at last, and the war will end," he told her, pulling her closer, making her rest her head against his chest. "Then you will be able to live the life you deserve. You all will."

"How can you be so sure?" she asked, trying to stay awake, her eyelids too heavy for her to keep her eyes open.

"I don't know," he replied truthfully, "but you don't have to worry. I will take care of everything, you will be all right."

"And you?"

"Who knows, maybe I'll come out of it alive as well."

"You promise?" she muttered sleepily against his chest, as she snuggled closer to him.

"I won't let anything happen to you," she heard him whisper against her hair, just as sleep took over. "I won't let anyone hurt you."


	60. the last battle I

She took a deep breath and tried to stop her hands from shaking; or at least to stop it from showing. It was surreal, it could not be happening. They had been preparing for it for days, many of them for years, but she still couldn't believe it was happening. She felt Harry squeeze her hand softly, and she squeezed back.

He had been nervous earlier, when the first groups had left to settle in the positions Severus had assigned them to, but now it seemed as if he had accepted what was about to happen. He had come to the point where he didn't fear what was coming any more. He didn't think about what could go wrong, about how much they could lose; he simply focused on the task ahead.

Ron was standing by the door. He would nervously walk back and forth for a few minutes, and then stand still for a few more. She could see the fear and nervousness, as well as the determination on his features, his expression changing between those feelings as his eyes wandered about the room.

After a moment of silence, Harry stood up and walked towards Ron. He had probably sensed he needed him more than she did.

Draco was sitting on her other side, but not as close as Harry had been. He looked paler than usual, and slightly nervous, although she knew someone that hadn't spent as much time with him wouldn't notice. To a mere observer, he would look calm, perhaps even relaxed. He turned his head to the side, and when their eyes met she smiled at him and moved closer.

"It's hard to believe it's so close, isn't it?" she asked, not sure what else to say but knowing she was the only one in the room Draco was comfortable around, and knowing he would probably want to talk to someone.

"It is," he simply replied, but she felt him relax, if only slightly.

"What do you think will happen now?"

"Who knows," he said, with a small shrug.

"Do you think we will be all right?"

"One way or another, it will end tonight. That's all that matters."

Draco's words reminded her of Severus, of what he had told her the previous night, and she couldn't help but ask him, "What did Severus tell you?"

"What?" he asked, confused.

"Yesterday, in the library. What did he tell you?"

He turned to her again, his eyes slightly narrowed, as if he were trying to decide what to tell her.

"He needed me to know a few things, just in case."

"Just in case of what?"

"Just in case he didn't make it," he said, his words bringing forth all the fears she had been trying to control.

"Things like what?"

"Just…things."

"That's not all, is it?" she asked, making sure she kept her voice low, so Ron and Harry wouldn't hear.

"He asked me to do something."

"What?"

"It's nothing important, but if he didn't want anyone else to know, then he probably had a good reason."

"What did he ask you to do, Draco?" she pressed. There was something about his attitude that was making her feel uneasy.

"I already told you, it's nothing," he shrugged, then tensed when he heard the clock on the wall chime.

"It's time," Harry suddenly said, turning to her. "We have to go."

With a deep breath she willed her body to relax enough for her to stand up, then looked at Draco one more time, smiled at him in what she hoped was a reassuring way, and walked to Ron and Harry.

"Give us a minute, and then Apparate there too."

"I know the plan, Potter," Draco replied coldly, not moving from his seat.

"Be careful," she said to him, and waited until he nodded before taking Harry and Ron's hands and Apparating to the clearing where she knew Voldemort would be waiting. It was a strange feeling, willingly walking into the battle.

The light cast by the almost full moon filtered through the trees around them, allowing her to see. She let go of Ron and Harry as soon as their feet touched the ground, but she remained close to them as her eyes searched the forest surrounding them. Her heart was beating so wildly she was sure every Death Eater around them would be able to hear it clearly.

They had to wait, she knew. They had to wait until the Death Eaters made the first move, or it wouldn't work. Voldemort had to believe they had fallen right into his trap.

She tightened her fingers around her wand, silently going over every spell and curse she knew in her mind, waiting for Voldemort's attack and knowing Ron and Harry were doing the same.

She had been waiting for it, but still the sound of Apparition startled her.

"You're late, Malfoy," Harry said, as soon as Draco stood in front of them.

"Sod off, Potter," he replied, and then turned to her. "So, what was so important we had to come all the way here to discuss?" he asked, just as they had agreed he would.

They couldn't know when Voldemort would attack, and they had to make him believe what he had seen in Draco's mind about a meeting had been real for as long as possible, so they had decided on a conversation, hoping the first attack wouldn't take too long to come. If they were just repeating words, and not busy thinking of what to say next, they would be able to stay more focused on their surroundings, ready to protect themselves. Or at least they hoped so.

"The objects you promised, where are they?" she asked, her gaze darting to him for a second before going back to search the woods around them.

"They're safe. I'll give them to you when you give me what we agreed upon," Draco replied.

"And what is it, I wonder, that she agreed to give you?" a cold voice asked from behind the first line of trees, and the four of them turned to where the sound had come from, wands at the ready, just in time to see Voldemort step into the clearing, his red eyes shining under the dim moonlight.

"What's this?" Harry asked angrily, turning to Draco for a moment, although he kept his wand trained at Voldemort all the time. The longer they kept him talking, the more time the Order members would have to get ready.

"What are you asking me for?" Draco shot back.

"So this is the reason why you betrayed your Master, your beliefs?" Voldemort asked with a sneer, as he took a step closer to Hermione. "All for this Mudblood?"

"Muggleborn or not, she's…" Ron started.

"Silence!" Voldemort hissed, waving his hand in Ron's direction, making him stagger a few feet back, his mouth still moving, but no sound coming out.

"Did you honestly think you could fool Lord Voldemort, child?" he hissed at Draco, his eyes gleaming wickedly. "Do you not know of my power?"

As soon as the words left his mouth, a low hiss was heard all around them, the sound of the wind moving through the trees and rushing at them, and Voldemort smirked, clearly pleased at their surprised expressions.

"I spared your life before, but you shall not be so lucky this time. You will not live past tonight, I assure you," Voldemort said coldly. "But before that, I have other matters to take care of," he added, turning to face Harry. "So we meet again, Potter."

"So it seems," Harry replied, just as coldly.

"And I assume these are the people you brought here to die for you this time…a blood traitor and a Mudblood," he said, glancing at her and Ron for a second. "It does seem like a good riddance, but no one will spare you this time, boy."

She was surprised to see the calmness in Harry's expression, the coolness with which he spoke to Voldemort. She wondered if their other meetings, when Harry had found himself alone facing the most evil wizard of all times, had been like that. But he wasn't alone this time, and it wasn't a trap, like it had been that time after the Triwizard Tournament. At least, it wasn't Voldemort that had set the trap. This time, they were ready for him, and the outcome would be different. The entire Order of the Phoenix was there, to back him up; this time would be the last time, it had to be.

"Perhaps you are right," Harry replied, "there is no need to get them involved in this. This is between you and I, and it should be settled that way."

"Stupid Gryffindors," Voldemort hissed with a cruel smirk, "always so ready to sacrifice themselves for others. Let me tell you something, boy, it isn't worth it; it never was. Look at your Mudblood mother, for example," he said, and Hermione saw Harry clench his fists by his sides, trying to control his temper. "She was so willing to die for you, to sacrifice herself so you could live, and it was all for nothing. She might have spared your life then, but you will still die at my hand, no matter what. All she bought you was a few years; your sacrifice tonight for these…friends of yours," he said, grimacing at the word _friends_, "won't even get them that much. Worry about yourself and forget the others."

"All right, then," Harry said, his tone still calm, even though she could see him tense. "Let's get this over with," he said, taking a step toward Voldemort and motioning for them to stop when they tried to do the same.

"Not so fast, boy," Voldemort hissed, a wicked smirk contorting his face as he raised both his arms to the sides. As one, ten robed and masked figures stepped out of the shadows and into the clearing, all of them stopping in a perfectly straight line on either side of Voldemort, all wands aimed at the four of them.

She grabbed Harry's sleeve when she saw him move protectively in front of her and Ron, but she couldn't pull him back. There was silence for a few moments, and then Harry spoke again.

"It is me you want dead, not them. Why don't you send your Death Eaters away and we settle this ourselves once and for all?"

"Why deny them the pleasure of seeing you die? I am sure they will all enjoy it," Voldemort hissed, and a few Death Eaters nodded in agreement. "But you are right about one thing, it is time this is settled. I hope you enjoy the show," he added, turning to her and Ron, "it will be the last thing you see."

With a smirk so cruel it made her shiver, Voldemort took a long step forward, away from the Death Eaters, and Harry did the same, stepping away from them.

"Harry, don't," she said, her tone almost pleading, but he didn't listen. His focus was entirely on the wizard before him.

"Braver than last time we met, I see," Voldemort said, "but it won't do you any good. Crucio!"

She gasped at the words, spoken so coldly, and again when she noticed Harry hadn't even made a movement to stop it. But the curse didn't reach him; an invisible force stopped it inches from Harry's body and ricocheted it back towards Voldemort, who had to cast a Shield Charm to block it.

"What is this?" Voldemort asked, seemingly more intrigued that angered.

"You didn't think it would be that easy, did you?" Harry asked, his eyes glued to Voldemort as he took a step closer to them, his red eyes searching for the source of the protection around Harry.

"A shield like this, it is not what that old fool allowed to be taught at Hogwarts. Did you think this kind of magic would give you a fighting chance? Do tell, just how deeply have you delved into the Dark Arts, Potter?"

"Enough," was Harry's only reply.

"And you think a simple shield will stop me, boy?" Voldemort asked, rage now even clearer on his voice as he raised his wand and muttered a few words under his breath. She felt the air around them shake slightly, and knew no matter what kind of magic Harry was using, it wouldn't last long against the wizard.

After a few seconds Voldemort took a small step to his side, and muttered a few more words, then repeated the action two more times. As the air thickened around them she knew the shield was almost gone.

"It's all right," Harry whispered by her side, then turned slightly to Ron and helped him lift the spell silencing him. "We will be all right," he assured her, just as Voldemort broke through the shield.

"Watch out!" Ron yelled, when Voldemort suddenly aimed his wand at Harry again, and pushed Harry to the ground, the golden ray of light missing Harry by inches and hitting him on the shoulder.

"Ron," she screamed, running to him as Harry raised his wand and stop Voldemort's next curse while trying to stand up. She saw Draco move towards Harry and knew he was helping block the attack, but she was too worried about Ron to do the same. Hoping the two of them would be able to hold Voldemort by themselves for a few moments, she kneeled by Ron and touched his face with a trembling hand. He was cold as stone. "Wake up," she cried, as she shook him slightly, but he didn't react. As she shook him again, she felt something strange against her hand, warm and moist, and when she looked down she saw Ron's shoulder was bleeding profusely.

She shook him one more time, desperation making it hard for her to think clearly, and she gasped in horror when suddenly Ron started convulsing, coughing blood and shaking, his eyes rolling back into his head. Tightening her hold on her wand, she aimed it at Ron and went over every Healing Charm she had learnt, which were quite a few, but she wasn't able to stop the convulsions or the bleeding no matter what she tried. Then she heard Draco yell something beside her, and the next second a curse hit him and he flew a few feet away; that was enough to make her react. There was obviously nothing she could do for Ron there, but Draco and Harry needed her help, so hoping he would be all right, that someone would know how to save him, she reached inside his pocket and took the emergency Portkey out, slipping it around his wrist before moving away and activating it.

She jumped to her feet as soon as Ron was gone, turning to Voldemort, who seemed to be the only one duelling Draco and Harry. His arm was moving so fast she could only see a blur as he both deflected the attacks and threw curses at the boys. She had never seen anything like it, such power and control. She noticed all the Death Eaters kept their wands trained at the three of them, but none of them seemed to have moved since the first curse had been shot, apparently awaiting their Master's orders.

Deciding it wouldn't be a good idea to attack one of them and force them into action, she turned back to the fight, casting a shield around Draco when he fell, deflecting a curse just in time; just then, a strange idea came to her and she rolled to the ground, aiming her wand at Voldemort's feet and firing, hoping the magical shield he had just cast around him would not cover them.

She had been right, but unfortunately Voldemort noticed her attack at the very last second, stepping to the side and dodging her curse by millimetres.

"Take care of those two, leave Potter to me," Voldemort suddenly yelled, his tone angry and commanding, and the masked wizards followed his orders at once.

Knowing the time to ask for help had arrived, she aimed her wand up to the sky, red flames shooting from it and lighting the night above them for a second. It was the signal they had agreed upon, the call for backup. It only took a few second for the first Order members to step into the clearing.

As spells and curses lit the night around them she felt lost, confused, and just as she turned around, trying to make sense of the chaos around her, she saw a Death Eater shoot a purple ray of light straight at her chest, and she was forced to drop to the ground to dodge it. Everything was happening so fast, everything so was chaotic, it was hard to know who was around her, hard to tell friend from enemy. Still, there was no time to lose, and after a second she was back on her feet, fighting.

Only five Order members had answered the first call, following Severus' plan. They were outnumbered, but they had not been expected, and so they had managed to hit many Death Eaters in the first few moments. She thought she had seen one or two Order members get hit as well, but she couldn't be sure. She was too busy trying to dodge curses and throw them at the same time.

The fight was fierce, but after a few moments, though she had no idea how long it had really taken, for time seemed to have no meaning anymore, they had managed to surround the Death Eaters still standing, forcing them to back up until they were all together in the centre of the clearing. But of course, things could not go that easy. It was just their luck.

"Master!" one of the masked men yelled, and as focused as Voldemort was on his duel with Harry, he somehow heard him.

In a split second, the wizard had turned around, taken in the situation, and flicked his free hand towards them, a rush of wind hitting the Order Members surrounding the Death Eaters, making them stumble back a few feet, throwing quite a few to the ground. And giving the Death Eaters time to recover.

As she covered from the wind, she glanced to the side to make sure Harry was all right. That was when she noticed Voldemort moving his wand to his forearm for a second, and she knew he was calling for reinforcements. How long would it take him to realize he had been set up?

Then the fight around her started again, and she saw a few of the Order Members fall, some she knew, some she didn't, but she couldn't dwell on that. She had to stay focused on the battle.

She turned around to dodge a curse and ran into a Death Eater, his arm quickly grabbing hers as he moved his wand to her neck. At a moment like that, she would have expected to be terrified, or perhaps confused, her mind a blank; but suddenly everything was very clear in her head, her rationale taking over her instincts.

"Look what we have here," the main said into her ear, as he pulled her closer. "Aren't you Severus' little friend?"

He was standing much too close for her to try to use her wand on him; he had his to her neck and would fire first. But she could do something unexpected. Blocking the sounds of the battle out of her head and gathering all the courage left in her body, she moved as fast as she could, lifting her leg up just as she moved her arm to the side, somehow managing to both knee the Death Eater hard between his legs and push the wand to the side when he tried to curse her. As she watched the wizard bend over in pain, she couldn't believe it had worked. But she had to finish the job. The time she had gained was enough to lift her other arm and curse the wizard into oblivion. She knew he wouldn't wake up any time soon.

From the corner of her eye, she saw movement, and then something came at her and pushed her hard to the ground. As the heavy weight fell on top of her, she felt the air being forced out of her lungs, and she gasped for breath while she fought to free herself.

"Easy there," a voice she instantly recognized said by her ear.

"Draco," she whispered, glad it was him and that he was all right.

"Have to be more careful, that curse almost hit you," he said, and she could see the worry in his eyes as he looked at her, trying to make sure she hadn't been hit.

Someone yelled near them, the words almost lost in the sounds of the battle, but she caught the word traitor before a Death Eater loomed over them and aimed his wand at Draco's back. But he had somehow noticed, too, and as he rolled with her to the side, he lifted his wand at the masked man and yelled, "Avada Kedavra!" a flash of green light erupting from his wand and hitting the wizard square on the chest, killing him instantly.

She was about to speak when loud screams coming from outside the clearing caught both their attention. A fierce roar broke through the night, silencing all other sounds for a second, and then a dark figure in a mask flew over them, falling dead a few feet from where they laid. As her eyes searched the darkness, the part of the forest from which the dead wizard had been thrown, another roar made the ground tremble, and then another and another. Soon a small group of Death Eaters ran into the clearing, their robes torn and their bodies scratched and bleeding, but their wands still aimed at the darkness they had come from as they walked back, too worried about what they were running from to pay any attention to the battle they were stepping into.

Then she saw what they were escaping from, and she felt a chill run through her body.

A group of men and women, at least twenty of them, stalked after them, stopping right before the clearing. She could see their eyes shine golden in the darkness, and she instantly knew who they were. As they took a step closer and the light cast by the moon hit them, she saw the state they were in and gasped. Their clothes were torn, their hair wild, their bodies covered in what looked like mud. Their chests were heaving up and down as they stood, almost crouched, and stared at the terrified Death Eaters. The women in the group were few, but they looked tall and well built. The men were huge. They were tall, their backs broad, their bodies strong, muscled. And still, it was the fierceness on their expressions that made them really look like a threat. Most of them were holding wands of their own, but it didn't look as if they had any intention of using them. They clearly liked another type of fight, more physical, and by the look of the Death Eaters they were after, they were more than proficient.

"Looks like more help is here," she heard Draco whisper, and only then did she remember where she was, what was happening. When she turned back to him she saw something strange in his eyes as he looked at her in silence for a moment. "I have to go now," he said in a soft voice.

"What?"

"There is something I have to do," he told her, "but I will be back, I promise. Be careful" he whispered to her, before kissing her lightly on the lips. Without giving her time to react, he stood up, tightened his hold on his wand, and Apparated away.

As soon as Draco's feet touched the ground, he moved behind the cover of a tall tree, waiting a few seconds to make sure no one had seen him before moving forward.

He stepped closer to the main entrance and waved his wand once. There were still wizards inside the place, he would have to wait.

He wished he could have stayed in the clearing, in the battle, with Hermione. He wanted to make sure she was all right, wanted to take her somewhere safe, but he knew she would never allow that. Instead, he was outside the Dark Lord's headquarters, waiting for the last Death Eaters to be called to the battle, so he could go inside and do what had been asked of him. It was the one thing he could do to help, to try to make it all end.

Hermione's eyes were still focused on the spot Draco had just vacated. She had no idea what had just happened, why he had left, but deep inside she was sure he had a good reason. He hadn't just bailed on them, escaped from the battle. She knew if he had left, it was for a purpose, for something important.

Another roar was heard, and she turned back to the pack hovering by the clearing. One of the Death Eaters had shot a curse at them, which someone had deflected. As she watched the action unfold she was sure of one thing, those werewolves didn't like the Death Eaters trying to curse them.

Like wolves they stalked forward, their eyes flashing and their faces fierce as they approached the trembling wizards. She had no idea what had happened before they arrived to the clearing, but she knew it had to be something terrible to have them scared in such a way.

As the first werewolf jumped forward, the Death Eaters scrambled around, desperate to get away from them. But then the others came to them as well, and a fight like she had never seen began.

The screams were deafening, and she watched, transfixed, as the werewolves fell onto the Death Eaters. Instead of wands, they were using their own bodies to fight. Every flash of teeth was accompanied by more screams. And blood, there was so much blood. For a moment, she wondered how someone could do so much damage with their own body. But they were fighting like a wolf would, using their strength, slashing and cutting every part they could reach with their teeth or their hands. It was like a horror movie, only real. And in only a few moments, the Death Eaters they had been following were dead, and they were turning to the other ones still on the clearing.

She wondered for the briefest moment if perhaps they would turn on the Order, but then she saw a glimpse of a familiar face by the clearing and relaxed. Remus was standing by the edge of the forest, his eyes golden as he looked at what the pack had done. His clothes were torn too, but not as bad as the others', and he had his wand raised and ready. At the sight of him, she realized that as long as he was there, he wouldn't allow the pack to hurt the Order. He would keep them safe, even if the werewolves lost control.

Then a scream broke through her haze. It was so loud, so full of rage, that it chilled the air around her. Voldemort had just realized what had happened to his Death Eaters, had just witness the werewolves turning against him, and just as she turned to him she saw him wave his wand at Harry, sending him flying backwards until his back hit a tree just outside the clearing, and then round on the werewolves.

"You will pay for your treason," he seethed, aiming his wand at the ground where they were standing. His eyes flashed crimson, so bright it was as if the light was actually coming out of them, and then with a small flick of his wand, the ground seemed to explode, sending the pack flying all over the clearing. Through the pained howls and the bits of earth and grass still flying all around them, she saw Voldemort move his wand to his arm again, summoning the rest of his army.

Draco felt the Mark on his arm burn, and knew the Dark Lord was calling the rest of his Death Eaters to him. He wondered for a moment what was going on at the clearing, but then the sound of loud voices approaching distracted him, and he stepped back, quickly finding a place to hide as the remaining Death Eaters stormed out of headquarters, their masks already in place as they strode just far enough so that they could Apparate away.

He waited for a few moments to make sure no one had been left behind, and then moved around the house. Severus had told him it was extremely important for him to wait until everyone was gone before trying retrieve the object he had left for him; they couldn't risk anyone seeing him with it. Draco didn't even know what it was, all he knew was that he would need it to succeed on his mission, and at that moment, that was all that mattered.

The object, Severus had told him, was protected by many wards and a strong disillusionment charm set by himself, and although it wasn't easy for Draco to find it and then get through the protections around it, all the information Severus had given him made the job much easier, and after only a few minutes he finally reached it, gasping when he realized what it was. He had seen it a few times in Dumbledore's office, and had heard a few rumours about how it had been used before by Potter. Severus had sent him after Godric Gryffindor's sword.

And neatly wrapped around it was a roll of parchment. Draco's instructions.

After a moment's hesitation and with tentative movements, Draco inched closer to the sword, his hand slowly reaching forward, a part of him wondering if he would even be able to touch it, being a Slytherin; perhaps there were spells or curses set in place by Gryffindor himself to keep away any wizard that didn't belong to his house. But why would Severus send him after it then? Draco knew the wizard wasn't happy with his and Hermione's relationship, but if he had wanted him dead, he would have killed him long ago. He'd had more than enough chances.

Taking a deep breath, and praying to Merlin this wasn't just a stupid trap, Draco took the roll of parchment and then wrapped his fingers around the cold handle, a sigh of relief escaping his lips when nothing happened.

His attention went back to the roll of parchment he had in his other hand. The previous night, in the library, Severus had explained to Draco he needed him to do something at the Dark Lord's Headquarters, but he couldn't tell him what it was, or even give him any details. It had taken Draco some time to understand Severus' reasoning, but finally he had seen the truth in it. He was going to face the Dark Lord with Potter at the very beginning of the battle, and if for some reason Voldemort decided to use Legilimency on him again, there was no way he could stop it.

The only reason why the Dark Lord hadn't been able to freely and easily enter Draco's mind the last time had been Severus' ancient magic, and although giving his former professor free access to his mind had not been pleasant in the least, Draco knew it was the only way to keep the other wizard out, the only chance to stay alive. Tonight in the battle, Severus had not been there to protect his mind, and if Draco had known any details of the plan, Voldemort would have seen it all in a split second. None of them could afford to take that risk.

Knowing there wasn't much time, and that he could be needed in the battle, Draco read through the instructions carefully, making sure he didn't miss a line, and then put them in his pocket. Covering the sword with the side of his robes just in case there was anyone left at headquarters, he made his way back to the main entrance and opened the door, his Mark burning slightly as he stepped through the wards and into headquarters.

After having spent so much time at the Order's headquarters, he couldn't help but notice all the differences between both places as he made his way inside. The coldness, the emptiness in this building was so different from what he had seen lately. It seemed as if everything here was grim, dark. Of course, the first few days he had spent with the Order had almost driven him crazy, all the friendship and niceties and hugs and puppies; it had been disgusting. But once they had started getting ready for war, once the tension in the place had become palpable, then he had started enjoying the place. It was a nice point in between the Dark Lord's headquarters and the Order's previous atmosphere.

Keeping his wand at the ready, Draco walked fast but carefully down the hallways, searching for a room he had never walked into. The Dark Lord's private quarters.

As far as he knew, no one but the Dark Lord himself ever entered the room, although of course there were rumours concerning him and Draco's aunt, Bellatrix, but no one dared speak of that freely, so it was impossible to know for certain.

Still, Severus had given him precise instructions as to how to find the bedroom, and Draco followed them carefully, making sure he got every step right. If what Severus had written about the wards protecting the room was true, the smallest mistake would have deadly consequences.

"Harry!" Hermione yelled, running to him through the clearing, mindlessly jumping over the figures lying on the ground and ducking to dodge the curses being shot throughout the clearing.

A dark figure, moving faster than anyone she'd ever seen, run past her, knocking her to the ground as it launched against a Death Eater, throwing him down and falling on top of him. The werewolf, since it was clear it could be nothing else, attacked the wizard with a viciousness that terrified her, nails and teeth sinking into the others' flesh, blood soon running all around them.

Tearing her eyes from the action was almost as hard as convincing herself that she shouldn't fear the werewolf attacking the Death Eater, that he was not a threat to her, but finally she managed to force her eyes away from the violent scene and stood up again, running to where she had seen Harry fall. The battle around her was so fierce that every step she took put her in the way of another curse or spell, making crossing the clearing almost impossible. The battle had restarted and, as the minutes passed, the first groups of Death Eaters had started to arrive, the rest of the Order joining the battle in response. Now this, she thought, was what a war felt like, and it was beyond anything she had imagined.


	61. the last battle II

Draco felt the magic of the wards as soon as he stepped in front of the blank wall, and knew beyond doubt that he had found the place. Reaching inside his pocket, he retrieved the roll of parchment Severus had given him and reread the detailed directions on how to lower the wards. Even with Severus' meticulous instructions, the energy and concentration it required was exhausting, not to mention time consuming. Almost a complete hour had passed before he even reached the last level.

He had never seen anything like it, hadn't even heard of wards set in such a way, layer after layer, some of them set so that attempting to lower one in any way other than the predesigned one would automatically trap him in place, activating at the same time an 'alarm system' that would alert the Dark Lord as to what was happening. Draco imagined that whatever it was the Dark Lord was keeping in that room, it must be every bit as important as Severus had implied to require such security measures.

As if everything was suddenly happening in slow motion, Hermione's gaze moved around the clearing, watching friends and enemies fall, bleed, die. She didn't want to see, didn't want to recognize any of the faces on the ground, but it was so hard not to let the fear and despair take over. Instead, she aimed her wand at every Death Eater she saw, cursing them and protecting herself and others as she still searched for Harry.

Suddenly, a flash of green lit the clearing, blinding her for a second, and as she turned to the source she saw Voldemort, standing alone, his wand aimed at the sky above them as he cast the Dark Mark, and then something else, something she would never had recognized if she had not been expecting it. As he moved his wand in a slow circle, red light erupted from his wand, forming a thin like around him and then flying between the trees and out of the clearing, carrying it's Master's message. He was finally summoning the Inferi.

But Voldemort's actions were not all that registered in her mind. If he was standing there alone, where was Harry? Had Voldemort's curse killed him? Was he lying broken somewhere among the trees, finally free of the battle? Had all their hopes been lost?

She refused to believe that, refused to let her mind consider the possibility for another second. Instead, she did what she should have done from the start. Moving to a calm spot just outside the clearing, she used one of the spells Severus had taught her. With a quick flick of her wand, she focused on Harry, and let her magic guide her to him.

He wasn't far away, but it wasn't until she was standing only a few feet from him that she saw him. Voldemort's curse had apparently sent him flying against a tree, and the power of the curse had been such that the impact had uprooted the tree, which had then fallen on top of Harry. With her heart beating wildly in fear, she ran the last few steps between her and her friend, all the while straining her eyes to see any movement, any sign that he was still alive, but finding none.

She stopped as soon as she reached him and knelt by his side, taking in his bloodied face and robes. The tree lay mostly across Harry's legs, she saw, but a few of the larger branches had fallen on top of his chest, and she wondered how, or if, he could even breathe under their weight. His chest certainly didn't seem to be moving at all. Her hand tentatively reached out to him, but she was too scared to touch him, too afraid that a simple touch would somehow worsen the already terribly looking wounds.

And then, as she felt the tears run down her cheeks at the thought of losing Harry, his lips parted in a soft groan, and his eyes slowly opened.

"Harry," she gasped, reaching forward to touch his face and seeing him wince in pain in response. "Harry, are you hurt? Can you move?" The fleeting thought that those were two rather stupid questions crossed her mind, but she was too worried to think clearly.

"Can't…breathe," Harry replied, his voice so low she wasn't sure if she had actually heard him or read his lips.

The tree, she thought; she had to get him out from under the tree, but how? Physically pushing the tree away was out of the question, and she had no idea how hurt Harry really was. What if the smallest of movements hurt him more?

"Move it," Harry gasped, as he struggled to take another breath. Her gaze moved over the large tree again, and she realized she couldn't use magic to move it either. No spell she could cast would be powerful enough to do it.

"I can't Harry, it's too heavy," she replied, as more tears fell from her eyes. How could this happen? He was suffocating under the tree, dying in front of her very eyes, and there was nothing she could do to help him, nothing she could do to save him. She turned around, desperate to get him some help, but there was no one around them, no one that could save him. They were alone, and she didn't dare leave him long enough to go find someone from the Order.

"Lift it," Harry replied, his bloodshot eyes closing as the pain became too much. "Have…to…move…"

"I can't do it, Harry," she cried. "It's too big, it won't move."

"Please," she heard him breathe, and her own breath caught at the sight of him. She couldn't just sit there and watch him die, she had to do something. Anything.

Standing up again, she took a step back, her eyes taking in the size of the tree as she took a steadying breath and lifted her wand. Trying hard to keep her hand from shaking, she focused on the task ahead, aiming her wand at the part of the tree that was crushing Harry's chest and yelling, "Wingardium Leviosa."

A slight tremble; that was all she achieved. All the concentration and strength she had managed to gather had only been enough to make the damn tree tremble. She wanted to scream in frustration, in fear, but instead turned to Harry again when she heard him groan in pain.

"I'm sorry," she whispered, stepping closer to him once more. "It's too heavy, Harry, I can't make it move."

"Wand."

"What?" she asked, confused. When his eyes opened again, she followed his gaze, then saw his right hand open and close slowly. His wand was lying a few inches away.

"Wand," he repeated, and she rushed to give him what he was asking for, not sure how it would help. "Together," he whispered then, and she understood, although in the state he was in, she wasn't sure it would be much help.

"Are you sure you can do this?" she asked, even as she stepped back again, ready to try the charm once more. He merely nodded slightly as his eyes closed.

"On three."

"Cut," he whispered before she could even start counting, then took another short breath. "Cut. Tree."

"What? No, I can't, Harry. I could hurt you even more."

"Cut," he repeated, and she could hear the firmness in his breathy tone.

Cursing loudly, she took another deep breath in an attempt to control her nerves, then tried to decide where she could cut the tree, trying to minimize the risk of hurting Harry even more and at the same time searching for one perfect spot that would make it possible for them to lift it afterwards. It was a hard decision, one she wished she wouldn't have to make, but she knew she had to try it, had to do anything she could to save her best friend.

Not giving herself time to rethink, she aimed her wand at the top of the tree trunk and whispered a Severing Charm, hearing the wood creak at the impact and hoping it would be enough to cut through it without cutting Harry on the way.

"Fuck," she heard Harry cough in pain as the charm sliced through the tree, splitting it neatly in two. She wasn't sure whether the charm had reached Harry or it was the trunk's movement that had hurt him, but she wouldn't waste any time wondering. If Voldemort, or even one of the Death Eaters, found them while Harry was still crushed under the tree…she didn't even want to think about it. They had to lift the tree off of Harry. Now.

"Ready?" she asked, after a few seconds, and caught Harry's small nod. Praying to Merlin he wouldn't get even more hurt, she aimed her wand at the part of the tree that was on his chest and waited for him to do the same. Then, as one, they murmured the words, Harry's lips barely moving as he concentrated on the charm.

For a few seconds nothing happened, and her eyes filled with tears at the thought that maybe she wouldn't be able to free him, that she would fail him, but then saw the leaves shake slightly, and saw Harry take a deeper breath. When her eyes moved down to Harry's body she realized they had managed to lift the tree almost an inch.

Empowered by the notion, she focused even harder on the task, slowly feeling the magic thicken the air around them, making the trunk move further away from him. But even after they let the piece of tree fall a few feet away from Harry and he took a pained but relieved breath, she knew they were not done, and that they had to hurry. She had no idea how long it had taken them to lift the first part, but she was sure it had been too long, and with the battle still raging on so close to them, it was nothing short of a miracle that no one had found them yet.

"We have to move the last part," she said to Harry after a moment. "Do you think you can do it?" she asked, and waited until he nodded to aim her wand at the bottom part of the tree and cast the charm.

This time, with Harry able to breathe more freely and move his arm, it took much less time, and although she could see the pain clear in Harry's face at every inch the tree trunk moved, only a few more moments passed before the last part of the tree was lying on the ground away from Harry, and she was kneeling by his side.

As soon as the tree had touched the ground Harry had sagged back, clearly exhausted, his eyes closed as he let go of the wand and moved his hands to his chest, rising and falling rhythmically as he took shallow breaths.

"Harry," she whispered, her gaze moving over his body, trying to find every visible wound and think of the best way to heal them. "Harry, are you all right?" she asked. "Can you breathe properly?" When he didn't reply, she pressed. "Harry, you have to tell me where you're hurt. We have to hurry, someone could find us any minute."

"My legs," he finally whispered. "I think they're broken. And my chest hurts, maybe some ribs too."

"Perhaps you should use the Portkey, go back to headquarters. They can heal you there."

"No," he gasped, "I won't go back. This isn't over, Hermione. I have to kill him."

She took a moment to process his words, the determination in his tone, and realized he was right. If he could stay there, he would. There was still much to be done, and Harry would not give up.

"Right. Bones, I can fix broken bones," she muttered nervously as she moved closer to his legs. One was clearly broken, the strange angle in which it was bent made her cringe, and although the other didn't look as bad the swelling around his ankle told her it was probably broken as well. "This might hurt a little," she said, as she waved her wand over one leg first, then the other, hearing the snapping sound of the bones moving into place followed by Harry's pained groaned.

His ribs were next, and after a quick check she noticed his left shoulder had popped out of place. She cast a few more spells over his torso, making sure to heal all the internal damage, which surprisingly wasn't much, as best she could, hoping it would be enough. Only when she was done did Harry open his eyes again, and seemed to look at her for the first time since she had found him there.

"Hermione," he said, alarmed, startling her. "Hermione, what's happened to you?"

"What?" she asked with a frown, not sure what he meant. Before she knew it he was on his feet, pulling her up, his hands on her shoulders as his worried gaze moved over her, from head to foot.

"What's happened to you? Are you hurt? Are you still bleeding?"

It wasn't until she looked down at herself that she understood what was going on.

"It's not my blood," she replied softly. It took a few moments for Harry to process her words, and then he let go of her.

"What?"

"It's Ron's," she explained softly. "I had to send him back to headquarters, Harry."

"Is he…? Will he be all right?"

"I don't know," she said, shaking her head. "I hope he will."

"This has to end," Harry told her, wiping away a stray tear from her face. "We have to kill him."

"We do."

"Well, well, well, what do we have here?"

The cold voice coming from behind her froze her on the spot, and her gaze locked on Harry for a second, both of them startled, both their minds trying to find a way out.

"I do believe, Harry, that we were to settle this between ourselves," Voldemort said. "I do not remember inviting your little Mudblood to the…oh no boy," he hissed, when Harry launched for his wand. The next second, Harry was pinned to a tree, unable to move. "Play nice, now," he taunted. When Hermione turned to face him, his attention went back to her. "So, after all this time, I finally get to do what I should have done so long ago," he said with a cruel smirk, his eyes flashing crimson, matching his pleased expression. "It seems this will indeed be a night to remember." Without another word, he flicked his wand once, a single flash of light marking her fate.

As the green flash of the curse flew towards her, time seemed to slow down once more, as if wanting to give her the chance to enjoy her last few seconds on earth. Movement to Voldemort's right caught her attention, and her eyes flicked to the figure running towards her.

As their gazes locked from afar for a fraction of a second she saw the desperation on Severus' expression as he ran. They both knew he was too far away to reach her in time, too far away to do anything but watch her die. This time, as the killing curse made it's way towards her, he wouldn't be able to push her away, take her to safety, keep her by him, and as she unsuccessfully tried to be strong, be brave, to accept what was going to happen, she realized she wanted nothing more than another day with him, another chance to be by his side, to have him with her.

Knowing there was no escape, no way to flee, no chance to Apparate to safety, she silently resigned herself to her fate. She tried to say goodbye to him without words, to somehow let him know how she felt, how much she wished they had had a chance.

But she was a fighter, after all, and although she knew there was nothing she could do to save herself she also knew that as soon as she was dead Voldemort would turn to Harry and kill him just as easily, and no one would be able to save him either. That knowledge was what kept her mind sharp, what kept her instincts running and told her to use her last seconds to give her friend a fighting chance. Turning her head to the side just enough to see him, she aimed her wand at Harry and released him from the magic pinning him to the tree, watching him fall and instantly scramble to reach his wand.

It was with a smile on her lips that she turned back to face Voldemort, her eyes flicking to Severus as the green became almost blinding.

And then fingers wrapped around her still stretched arm, strong fingers that tightened around her wrist and somehow pulled her up into the air before the killing curse reached her.

Then she felt another pull, and her body shifted and turned in midair, and she closed her eyes in both fear and relief as she felt the cold wind against her face. The next second she was upright again, as she landed on something hard. But it was strange; although she was sitting down on something as hard as the ground, and certainly as cold, she could feel she was still moving.

The sounds from the battle were fainting away, and as she moved her hands down to touch the surface she was sitting on, she felt herself sway slightly, and a pair of strong arms wrap around her waist.

"Careful there," someone said against her ear, and she opened her eyes in surprise as she recognized the voice, yelping and grasping those arms as soon as she realized where she was. "Are you all right?" Charlie asked, when she tightened her hold on him.

"I don't like flying," she replied in a shaky voice, "and I don't like dragons."

"Well," he laughed, as the dragon they were riding abruptly turned to the left and she yelped again. "I believe Norbert here saved your life," he told her, patting the dragon's neck with affection. "Maybe it is time you change your opinion of them."

As the last protective ward was lifted from the room, Draco reached for the doorknob, stopping mid-motion when he realized he actually had no idea what was in there, what he would find. What if it was something dangerous? What if he would manage nothing but getting himself killed as soon as he opened the door? It was strange, not knowing what to expect, and he did not like the feeling. Whatever was in that room, it couldn't be good.

But he wouldn't be afraid, and he wouldn't fuss by the door another second; he had to do what Severus had asked him to, and then he had to return to the battlefield, like he had promised Hermione he would. He was a Death Eater, for Merlin's sake! More so, he was a Death Eater who had betrayed his Master, the most powerful dark wizard in, well, forever as far as he was concerned, to his greatest enemy, the Order of the Phoenix, and the one wizard who, according to a prophesy, would might bring him down, and one of the main reasons for said betrayal had been a Mudblood. If he hadn't feared Voldemort, then what was there to fear now?

"Just get it over and done with," he whispered to himself, then turned the doorknob and pushed the door open.

It was a good thing that his hesitation had kept him a step away from the door as it creaked open; that was the only reason why the green flash of light that shot through it didn't hit him.

Without stopping to think he took another small step away from the door, standing right in front of it, and then kicked it open as hard as he could. He felt it hit something hard as it opened, and then heard a pained groan, but it was the figure standing by the canopy bed that caught his attention. Hawkins, one of Voldemort's most trusted, was standing there, facing him, with his wand aimed straight at his chest.

If he hadn't spent the last few days training, it would have taken Draco longer to react, but being as it was, it barely took him a split second to make his decision. Falling to a crouch he miraculously dodged another curse and fired back, and although Hawkins managed to deflect his curse, it distracted him long enough for Draco to step inside and kneel behind the cover of a large wooden chest.

As if he hadn't moved at all, as soon as Hawkins' attention went back to where Draco had been standing, he saw him there, kneeling on the floor, apparently searching for his wand. Even after having used it many times, Draco was still amazed at how well the modified Mirror Charm worked.

Crawling to the edge of the chest, he watched Hawkins' eyes fall on his mirrored figure, the look of anger on the wizard's face turning into a smirk as he slowly stepped closer to the Draco on the floor, lifting his wand and aiming it at him.

"How can someone with such a clean bloodline be so inept at duelling, I wonder" he asked aloud as he stepped closer to the entrance, his wand aimed firmly at him. "Answer me!" he yelled, when the figure didn't respond.

As he took another step closer, Hawkins put himself just a few paces from the real Draco, unintentionally giving him a clear shot. Draco didn't waste his chance, standing and screaming "Stupefy!" then watching the wizard fall, oblivious to the other man that had been standing behind the door. There was nothing he could do to protect himself as the second Death Eater closed the door with a bang, aimed his wand straight at Draco's chest, and then screamed, "Crucio!"

She closed her eyes as she felt the wind blow past her, and tightened her arms around Charlie's as the Norbert abruptly turned again. She heard him laugh lightly at her actions, and elbowed him on the ribs, making him laugh harder.

"Okay, okay, I'm sorry," he laughed when she elbowed him again. "You don't have to worry, I won't let you fall."

"You better not, or I will kill you," she replied, only half joking.

The dragon was flying so fast it made everything around them turn into a blur as they moved higher and higher into the sky, and only seconds passed before she could no longer see the ground beneath them. Suddenly they were surrounded by clouds, the air clear and moist around them, and as much as she hated flying she couldn't deny a certain charm to it, a sudden break from reality that was most welcome, if only for a few precious seconds. But as soon as the thought crossed her mind reality came crashing down on her. They were in the middle of a battle larger than she had ever seen, and she had left Harry alone to face Voldemort.

"Charlie, we have to go back," she yelled urgently, her voice barely carrying through the wind.

"What?"

"We have to go back, I have to help Harry."

It took him a moment to understand what she had said, and then he pulled at one side of the reins around Norbert's neck and they were descending so fast it took her a few seconds of utter terror to realize they were not actually falling.

"Do you think maybe we can…" she started, wanting to ask him to slow down, but before she could even finish the sentence they were out from between the clouds, and the scene around them paralyzed her.

"Look out!" she yelled, when she saw a Death Eater flying straight towards them, and before she could even draw her wand she felt Charlie push her forward with his own body, both of them barely missing the curse shot by the wizard.

"Hold on tight," she heard Charlie yell by her ear as he moved her free hand to the reins and let go of her.

Even as she held on to the dragon beneath her for dear life she felt the world around her twist and turn at every change in direction the animal made. And still, the surprise at what she was seeing somehow managed to cover the fear, and her mind cleared as her instincts told her what to do.

There were six more dragons in the air, and at least twenty Death Eaters on brooms flying around them all. By the looks of it, their battle had been going on for some time.

Sitting up straight and wrapping the reins around her wrist for safety, she turned to the side, shutting up the part of her mind that kept trying to remind her she was Merlin-only-knew how high into the air on top of a dragon and could fall any minute as she focused on the Death Eaters moving fast as lightning towards her and Charlie.

She cast a Shield Charm around them to stop the curse coming their way, and heard Charlie yell another behind her as he made Norbert turn sharply to the right, barely missing yet another curse.

As her eyes searched their surroundings, looking out for another attack, she saw four Death Eaters fall into a straight line in front a large red dragon, all of them ducking as the animal flew towards them, stopping just as it went over their heads and firing as one, hitting it on the abdomen. Suddenly, the dragon opened its mouth in a silent cry its wings freezing mid-motion; and then it was falling, too fast for anyone to do anything, taking the wizard riding it along.

"Cornel!" Charlie cried as he saw his friend fall, and then whirled their dragon around, heading for the four Death Eaters.

They were still yards from them when she felt him pull on the rains again, and felt the Norbert's chest rumble. Then it opened its mouth and breathed a flame so large she could feel the air heating all around them. It only took it seconds to reach the four wizards; then they were enveloped by the fire, their pained screams breaking through the air as they fell helplessly to the ground.

That seemed to get the other Death Eaters' attention, and a large group of them turned towards her and Charlie, falling into a V formation with practiced eased as they charged.

"How good are you with Shielding Charms?" Charlie asked her urgently as the wizards flew closer.

"Good enough," she said, her hand easily twirling and flicking her wand as Charlie got ready to attack.

"Keep the shield just around you," he whispered into her ear, as he drew a small knife and cut part of the reins. Then he was gone.

"Charlie!" she yelled, just as the first curses hit her shield. She wanted to turn around, to see where Charlie had fallen, to help him, but knew a second's distraction would be enough for the shield to weaken and the curses to slip past.


	62. the last battle III

It was taking all her focus to keep the Shield up as they attacked from every angle. Shooting back was out of the question. Charlie was gone, she was alone, outnumbered and virtually helpless, what was she going to do?

Then one of the Death Eaters attacking her was hit by a freezing charm and fell, and then another, and another. Before she knew what was happening there were only three wizards left in front of her, and whatever had attacked them seemed to have startled them enough to break their concentration.

Lifting the Shield Charm around her she attacked, quickly hitting two of the wizards and watching the last one fall next, hit from beneath.

As her eyes searched the sky again for signs of another attack, still not sure of what had just happened, she felt something wrap tightly around her ankle and yelled in fear, quickly turning to the side and aiming her wand downwards, only to gasp and let go of the reins, nearly falling from Norbert as well.

"Don't shoot," she heard Charlie yell as he climbed up the piece of reins he had cut earlier, and she quickly twisted to the side to help him up, wrapping her arms around him the second he was safely on the dragon's back again.

"I thought you'd fallen," she whispered relieved to see he was all right.

"Couldn't curse them from up here," he told her, as if that was enough of an explanation for what he had just done. "Hey," he said, when she didn't let go of him. "It's all right, you don't have to worry."

"Don't have to worry?! You just jumped off the dragon to curse those Death Eaters!"

"They were going to kill us, I had to d…Bloody hell, they're here," he said suddenly, and she straightened up and followed his gaze.

Beneath them she could see movement, and even from where they were she could recognize the figures on the ground. Voldemort's Inferi had arrived.

"Hold on tight," Charlie said, then he lifted his wand flicked it quickly. "Is everyone ready?"

"What?" she asked, confused.

"Not you," he whispered.

"Ready," a voice said, as if someone was speaking from right beside her, but there was no one there. Soon, the response was echoed by other voices. It took her a few seconds to realize it was the other dragon keepers she was hearing.

"All right. I'll stay behind and take care of the Death Eaters," Charlie said, "the rest of you follow the plan."

She watched, amazed, as the five remaining dragons spread their wings wider and lowered their necks, flying down towards the Inferi so fast she knew if she had been there she would have probably had a heart attack before they even reached them.

But before she had much time to dwell on that, Charlie pulled Norbert's reins again, and they turned to the Death Eaters still flying. There were eight of them left, and they were all entirely focused on her and Charlie.

"What are we going to do?" she found herself asking, as the Death Eaters flew closer to them, forming a line first, and then slowly spreading.

"We can't let them surround us," Charlie said. "You take the ones to the right, I'll take care of the others."

Without another word, he turned to the side and shot the first curse, which one of the Death Eaters easily deflected. It was as if that one curse had marked the change, and the battle instantly restarted around them.

Focusing on both attacking the dark wizards and protecting her and Charlie, she gave up on the powerful curses in favour of minor charms and jinxes that, at such height, would have the same effect once they hit their target, and would require much less power and concentration.

After a few failed attempts, she managed to Vanish one of the Death Eaters' broomstick and hit another with a Breaking Charm, causing both wizards to fall, but then a curse caught her unaware and hit her on her side, the force of it knocking her off Norbert, and it was only Charlie's fast reaction that saved her from falling.

Charlie held her wrist in a bruising grip as he blocked curses right and left, trying to keep the Death Eaters at bay long enough to help her up, but there were still three of them left, and she knew he could not hold them back long enough to help her.

Thanking Merlin that she had managed to hold on to her wand after being hit, she cast a Protective Charm around them, using all the strength she had left. As soon as the remaining Death Eaters realized their curses were being deflected they flew back together, moving closer to each other and further away from Norbert, giving Charlie a chance to pull her back up.

But she should have known the wizard's sudden retreat was no good sign. She had barely had time to sit straight before they attacked again, but this time as one of them focused on her and Charlie, the other two flew lower, ready to attack Norbert.

And just as she had seen it happen with the other dragon, Norbert's wings froze as he was hit from beneath, his chest rumbling in a pained scream; and then they were falling.

But even them falling didn't seem to be enough for the Death Eaters, and they attacked again, hitting Charlie on the back and making him stumble to the side and fall. Without wasting a second to think, she did just as Charlie had done before to save her.

She wrapped her arm around the reins as she leaned to the side, catching Charlie as he fell, the pull of his body as she caught him so strong she felt her arm was about to be ripped off. But still she held on to him, knowing that if she let go, he would fall to his death.

Then she realized they were falling anyway, that the ground was coming closer and closer, and with one arm hooked around the reins and the other holding Charlie, there was nothing she could do to stop the fall. If she wanted to use her wand she would have to let go of him, let him fall to save herself. There was no other way to stop the fall, to save either one of them. And still, she didn't let go.

"Crucio!"

As soon as the words were uttered, Draco fell down, his limbs shaking as the curse ran through his body. But something wasn't right. Perhaps it had been the broken nose, a result of Draco kicking the door into his face as he had entered the room, that had prevented the Death Eater from voicing the words right, or maybe there was something wrong with his wand, but for some reason, the curse didn't seem to affect him as much as it had in the past.

Draco gritted his teeth and balled his fists, trying to overcome the pain, and after the first few moments it slowly began to fade. Still, the Death Eater, a young wizard Draco couldn't remember having met before, stepped closer, as if he hadn't realized the curse wasn't working as it should.

Trying to stop the smirk that threatened to reach his lips even through the pain, Draco began shaking his body harder, mimicking the effects of the curse as he screamed as loud as he could, even drowning the wizard's laugh.

The pain continued to fade, but the wizard made no attempt to lift the curse and Draco didn't stop shaking, being careful as to keep the Death Eater's eyes away from his arm as he slowly inched closer to his fallen wand.

When in a fraction of a second Draco wrapped his fingers around the wand, twisted around to face the young Death Eater and muttered the words of the Killing Curse, the wizard was so surprised that the only movement he managed before the curse hit him was widening his eyes in fear. It was with a strange sense of satisfaction that Draco watched him fall, heard the wand fall from his dead fingers and clatter on the floor.

Closing his eyes for a second to shake the last lingering effects of the Cruciatus Curse, he slowly stood up, taking a steady breath before opening his eyes again and letting them search the room for the object he had come to find.

He had asked Severus what it was he needed to destroy, and as with everything else, the wizard had refused to give him more information than what was strictly necessary. When he got inside the Dark Lord's headquarters, if he got inside his Dark Lord's headquarters, actually, he would know. The object he had to destroy would be the one thing heavily protected inside the room.

Draco couldn't keep the surprised look from his face when he saw exactly what it was the two Death Eaters had been guarding.

Taking a quick look to make sure Hawkins was still unconscious, he carefully stepped closer to the bed, his free hand reaching for the sword Severus had left for him.

He had seen the snake so many times with his Master, had seen him keep it as a pet, showing it more care than he did anything or anyone else, but Draco had never thought it would be anything more than that, a pet. He had never imagined this snake could be as important as Severus had told him it was, that its survival would condemn any attempt by the light to finally defeat Lord Voldemort for good.

As he slowly raised the sword, Draco kept his eyes on Nagini. It looked fast asleep, its enormous body taking over half the bed, its figure rhythmically rising and falling as it breathed.

As he prepared to strike, a part of him wondered what it was about the snake that made it so powerful, so important, although he guessed it had something to do with the other objects the Order had taken from the Dark Lord, or the cup he had taken for Hermione. Whatever it was, it didn't matter right now. If killing Nagini would give them a chance to succeed, then there was nothing to contemplate, nothing to think about. He would do what he had gone there to do, and then he would return to the battlefield. Questions could wait.

But then Hawkins groaned loudly, and the second Draco's head twisted to the side to make sure he was still unconscious Nagini's eyes snapped open.

As if it had been waiting for a chance to strike, the snake launched itself at Draco, its mouth wide open as it went for him, its fangs finding flesh and tearing it open. The attack had been so sudden it had caught Draco by surprise, and there was nothing he could do to prevent the poisonous fangs from sinking into his flesh.

All he could do as he felt the poison seeping into his veins and quickly spreading through his body was twist his arm and bury the sword deep into Nagini's body.

If he was dying, he would take the snake with him.

There was something wrong with her legs, she knew that much. No matter how hard she tried to move them, they didn't seem to work. She opened her eyes but it was dark all around her, as if she was behind some sort of wall, and she couldn't see a thing. She knew she was lying on the ground, she could feel the earth and rocks under her face, but she had no idea why she was there or what had happened.

As she twisted around, trying to get her legs to move, she felt something warm lying beside her. What could it be? Her head was pounding, and her brain seemed to be going slower than it ever had, as if her very head was filled with some heavy fog that didn't let her think. She had no idea where she was or why, all she knew was that she was in danger, and she had to get away from there.

She moved her arms to the warm figure beside her, but one of her shoulders hurt terribly, as if it had been pulled out of its socket. With her other hand she reached to the figure, her fingers touching some rough fabric and some hair.

"Lumos," she whispered, and saw her wand lit a few inches away from her hand.

The dim light cast by the wand's tip was enough for her to see around her. Charlie was lying beside her, although she could only see his torso from where she was, and the thing she had thought was some sort of wall was in fact Norbert.

Gritting her teeth to shun the pain away, she reached for her wand, healing her shoulder before sitting up. Now she could see why she couldn't move her legs; Norbert's tail had fallen on top of them.

Just like she had with Harry, she used the charm she had learnt so many years before to lift the dragon's tail, and then quickly scrambled backwards to get out of the way before it fell back down. As she sat back against a tree to gather enough strength to heal her legs she looked up at the sky and wondered how they had survived such a fall. Then she remembered.

They had been falling, hopelessly, the Death Eaters trying to curse them even as they went down, and she had been unable to do anything, one hand holding Charlie and the other holding them both to Norbert.

Then another dragon had come to them, seemingly out of nowhere, and charged at the Death Eaters, making them scramble away long enough for the witch riding it to aim her wand at them and slow their speed. But then one of the Death Eaters had turned to her, his curse hitting target and making her fall too, breaking the charm slowing her and Charlie's fall at the same time.

It took her a few moments to realize that, ever since she had regained consciousness, she hadn't seen Charlie move at all.

Unable to push back the gory images that instantly came to her mind, she scrambled towards him, her hand trembling as she moved her wand towards his face, trying to see better.

"Charlie," she whispered, afraid to speak louder, in case he didn't react and it confirmed her worse fears. "Charlie," she said again in a sob, her free hand reaching for his cheek, carefully wiping away the blood covering one side of his face. When he suddenly flinched away form her touch in pain she gasped, surprised, falling backwards and dropping her wand along the way. With a whispered curse she took her wand again and kneeled by him.

"Charlie, can you hear me?" she asked, a little louder this time, and a groan was his only response.

Now she knew he was alive, she focused on searching for wounds, trying to find out how badly hurt he was. She started with his head, using her wand to find heal every cut and bump, moving them to his shoulders and arms. She was so focused on what she was doing that it wasn't until she reached his chest that she realized that his body was twisted to the side and crushed under Norbert's wings from his hips down.

"Charlie," she called again, and she saw his eyes open. "Charlie, can you hear me?" This time his pained groan was accompanied by a small nod of his head. "We have to get you out of here," she said urgently. "Is there any way to move the dragon?"

He closed his eyes for a second, then shook his head.

"Is Norbert-" he started, then closed his eyes and took a deep breath, trying to gather strength. "Is Norbert dead?"

"I don't know," she said. "Hasn't moved since we fell."

"It's my favourite one," he told her, his voice barely a whisper.

"Charlie, we have to get out of here, they could find us any minute."

"Don't think that's a possibility," he said, looking down his body. She followed his gaze for a moment, and realized he was probably right.

"There has to be a way," she said, refusing to just give up.

Opting for the most obvious course of action, she stood up and stepped closer to the dragon, then gingerly leaned forward, trying to push the wing back. No matter how hard she pushed, she couldn't get it to move so much as an inch.

Taking a step back, she aimed her wand at Norbert and tried to lift the wing, but between its size and weight, and the fact that magic never worked properly on dragons, all she managed to do was make it tremble for a second, the movement making Charlie scream in pain.

"Do you know any spell or charm that would work? Something I can do to move the wing away?"

"Just the two of us?" he asked in a shaky voice, then shook his head again. He looked at her once more, and then his eyes closed.

"Charlie," she called, reaching for his face, turning it to her. It was only then that she realized how cold his skin felt. "Charlie," she repeated, and noticed his breathing slowing down. "Charlie, talk to me," she pleaded.

"Tired," he mumbled in response, without even opening his eyes.

"Charlie, I think you're still bleeding, but I can't get to the wound," she said, wondering how long she had to move the dragon, find it and heal it before it was too late.

"It's cold."

"We have to move Norbert," she said again, but this time he didn't even respond. "Charlie," she said urgently, shaking him slightly. "Charlie, you can't fall asleep. We have to get you out of here."

Her eyes searched their surroundings again, trying to find something that would help her save him. It was just like it had been with Ron, the same fear and helplessness all over again. Then she realized there might be a way.

"Charlie," she said, shaking him again, harder this time. "Charlie," she called louder, and as soon as his eyes opened she asked, "Would the dragon's magic affect a Portkey?" He looked at her for a moment, frowning as he tried to understand what she was saying, but then his eyelids started to drift closed. "Listen to me," she insisted, while he was still conscious. "Would you be able to get away form here with a Portkey being so close to Norbert?"

"I…Yes, I think so."

"Where's your Portkey?" she asked urgently, looking up at the sky when she heard a dragon roar just in time to see a large column of fire leaving it's mouth, lighting the sky above them.

"Pocket," he whispered tiredly, and she reached to his robes, searching for the one that held the Portkey. It took her a moment to realize it wasn't there, which meant it had to be in another pocket; the only ones left were under Norbert.

"Here," she said, reaching inside her own robes, "take mine."

"No," he whispered, shaking his head slowly. "You could need that later."

"Well, you need t now," she said firmly, hooking the chain around his neck. "Thank you, Charlie," she whispered. "Thank you for helping me."

Without giving him time to reply, to try to convince her to keep the Portkey, she activated it and watched him vanish in mid-air, hoping, yet again, that the Order would be able to help him.

As soon as she was sure the Portkey had worked, she jumped to her feet and ran around Norbert, following the sounds of the battle into the clearing.

There were large bumps on the ground she instantly recognized as dragons, and half the forest around her was on fire. Even through all that, it was the rhythmic thumping of feet that caught her attention and she followed the sound, gasping loudly when she saw just what was causing it.

Inferi, dozens of them, were marching across the clearing, moving as one, oblivious to the chaos around them, only halting to stop those wizards closest to them.

There were still two dragons flying over them, but now there were more Death Eaters in the air around them, making it impossible for them to do anything about the Inferi.

She knew they were going to reach the main battlefield, it was only a matter of time, and when they did, the Order would be lost.

There weren't many things she could do to stop them, but running away wasn't an option, so she did the only other thing she could. Running to the closest fallen dragon, she carefully but hurriedly climbed to its back. Now that she was high enough she could see the entire group of Inferi clearly.

Going through every single one of Severus' comments on the curse and hoping it wouldn't go as badly as it had the last time, she carefully voiced the words as she twirled and flicked her wand. After a second the tip lit up, and a shot of fire erupted from it.

She focused on silently guiding the flame as she made it grow. It only took it a second to reach the first line of Inferi. The group continued to move for a few moments, the Fiendfyre stopping just an inch from them, as if they had an invisible protection around them, just like the Horcruxes had. But she knew the fire could get past the protection, and she concentrated on making it advance.

Soon the invisible shield vanished, the flames finally touching the creatures. Their shrieks were deafening as the first line burned and the others soon tried to scramble away, but she made the flames circle them, surrounding most.

They had been people once, she knew. They had been alive, and loved, but if she let her mind go there, she wouldn't be able to go on, so instead she shut the screams and the smell of burning flesh away as she empowered the fire, watching it grow until it was a wall around them, the flames so high she couldn't see what was happening beyond them anymore.

The concentration and energy it took to keep the Fiendfyre under control was draining, and soon she felt the curse weaken, but she used every bit of energy she had left, holding it long enough to take down every Inferi in the group.

She was about to lift the curse when a Death Eater, who had been stunned by one of the wizards on the dragons, fell into her, knocking her from the dragon's back.

As she fell she saw the sky turn orange, the air around her so heated from the fire she could almost feel it burning her skin. Without wasting a second she climbed back onto the dragon, needing to see what was happening, even though she knew it already; the Fiendfyre was out of control.

She tried to focus on quelling it, but she was too drained, and no matter how hard she tried, nothing she did worked. The flames were now so high she was sure they could be seen from anywhere in the forest, and as they moved in every direction they burned all that was on their way, quickly reducing the area to ashes.

She watched them move closer to where she was, unstoppable, and she tightened her hold on her wand, redoubling her efforts to control the fire. She had done it once, the only other time she had used the curse, and although she had had Severus' help then, she wouldn't give up.

Then, just as the flames were about to reach her, a loud roar broke through the air, a sound she had heard before. It seemed Voldemort had seen the flames, had realized what was happening, and for once she hoped he was every bit as powerful as everyone thought, because she knew the wizard hated nothing more than losing. He would try to put the fire out, and she silently prayed to Merlin he would succeed, not only for her, but for the other witches and wizards there, fighting for the Order.

Suddenly everything went dark, and she looked up to see the sky covered in black clouds. There was a loud thundering sound, and then it was raining, so hard the raindrops hurt her face as they fell. The rain was so hard and dense her clothes were drenched in a matter of seconds, but she could tell it was no regular rain. Whatever charm or curse it was that Voldemort had cast, it was clearly the right one. The water drops were quickly weakening the Fiendfyre, and after just a few moments there were only a few flames left. Without wasting a second she aimed her wand at what was left of the fire, making it vanish. If only Voldemort knew his rain had come too late to save his Inferi, but just in time to save her…

Hoping the Order witches and wizards still there would be able to deal with the remaining Death Eaters, she quickly climbed back down, her gaze soon landing on the wizard that had knocked her off the dragon earlier and on the broom still in his hand.

Cursing the fact that she would have to fly again, she summoned the broom to her and climbed on it, ready to fly away form the Inferi and the dragons, towards the main battlefield.

It was time she went back to help Harry.

The poison was quickly paralyzing Draco's body, and the pain and blood loss was making him dizzy, but even through the fog that was threatening to take over his brain he heard Hawkins groan again and stir, and he knew he only had a few seconds before the wizard woke up and killed him. If he was lucky.

And then Draco remembered Severus had given him one more thing with the note in the library the previous night. He remembered the wizard had handed him a small vial filled with some strange green potion, and when Draco had asked him what that Severus had only said that he would know what it was for if he needed it.

As his brain seemed to slow down even more, Draco wondered if perhaps what Severus had given him was in fact not a potion, but a simple antidote, if maybe the wizard had guessed Draco might find himself in a situation such as this, and had given him a means of survival.

Knowing there was nothing left to lose and no time to waste, he used the little strength he had left to push the dead snake away from himself and reach inside his pocket. A small sigh of relief passed his lips when his fingers closed tightly around the vial; it was a miracle it hadn't broken.

Hearing Hawkins groan again, Draco retrieved the vial from his pocket as fast as his failing body would allow him and carefully uncorked it, moving it closer to his mouth and tilting it so he could drink the green fluid, feeling it burn down his throat and hoping it wasn't too late.

As the last remains of strength left his body he fell back, his eyes closing as he took a shuddering breath. Well, at least he had managed to kill the damn snake.

But then his entire body began to burn, as if the blood in his veins was on fire, and when he suddenly shook and twisted in pain he realized he was no longer paralyzed. As the seconds passed and Severus' potion burned Nagini's poison away, the pain began to fade, slowly clearing his mind once more.

He was still badly injured and bleeding profusely, and he knew that if he wanted to survive he would need to find a wand, and fast. Using the sword he was still holding for support, he slowly rose to his knees, willing the dizziness away as he stumbled to his feet. It was hard to move, and even harder to think, but he would not give up, he would not let Voldemort win.

Then the sound of movement distracted him, followed by yet another groan. As he turned his head to the side he saw Hawkins' eyes open, and knew he only had a few seconds before the spell wore off and the wizard was able to move again. If that happened, he was lost; there was no way he could win any kind of fight or duel in his state.

His eyes quickly searched the room again, and he saw his wand, lying on the floor by the chest. There was no time to reach it.

Knowing it was the only way, and that there was no time to waste, he staggered towards the fallen wizard, tightened his hold on the sword when he reached him, and then he lifted it, closing his eyes tightly as he buried it deep into the man's chest, trying to shun away the pained sounds, the soft gurgle of the blood as it filled his lungs and spilled to the floor.

It was strange, ironic even, how more blood had tainted his hands since he had started working with the Order of the Phoenix than it had in all the time he had followed the Dark Lord.


	63. the last battle IV

Using a quick spell to find the direction the main clearing was in, Hermione quickly left the burnt woods behind, the rain dimming as she flew away, but still making it hard to see. As she reached a part of the forest covered in thick trees and bushes she turned the broom slightly upwards, gaining height to stay clear of the branches, feeling her hands shake as she saw the ground further and further away, but still keeping a strong hold on the broomstick.

There were small clearings all over the area, just like she had seen on Severus' map, and battles were taking place in many of them. She also saw a few clearings empty but for the figures lying still on the ground, and she didn't know which sight was worse. She tore her gaze away from the ground, not wanting to accept the fact that many of those figures, both the ones lying still and those fighting for their lives, were friends of hers, people she knew and cared about.

Movement to her left brought her mind back to the present, and she turned the broom in its direction when she saw the trees shake, and a few of them fall. It was as if something enormous was moving in the forest, uprooting the trees as it went. Then she heard a loud roar and, as three more trees fell to the side, she saw the top of a head that could only belong to a giant heading to the closest clearing and destroying everything on its way.

As she took in what she was seeing, what it could mean, she felt her heart skip a beat and wondered if Voldemort had brought giants to fight for him. Weren't the Inferi bad enough? And if he had contacted the giants, then how could Severus not have known? But just as she was beginning to feel desperate, an all too familiar voice, audible even over the sounds of snapping trees, broke through her train of thought.

"Over 'ere, Grawpy," she heard the deep voice shout, and she couldn't help the relieved laugh that escaped her lips. She lowered the broom just enough to make sure she had heard right, that it was really Hagrid there, and she saw him fighting Death Eaters as fiercely as one would expect from a giant. Or half-giant, in his case.

Seeing he was more than capable of handling himself, she corrected the broom's course and headed back to the main battlefield, flying lower as she got closer.

The sounds of the falling rain and the wind rushing against her face were soon replaced by screams and yelled curses, rays of light erupting from every wand, some missing or being deflected, but many hitting their target, both Order members and Death Eaters.

Pushing away all the lingering fears flying brought, she tightened her hold on the broom and leaned forward, trying to go faster. She had no idea how much time had passed since Charlie had saved her from Voldemort's Killing Curse, and she could only hope Harry was still safe, or at least alive and fighting. If something had happened to him she didn't know…

Suddenly, just as she left the protection of the woods and flew into the clearing, a flash of dark red light approached her form the side, and before she even had time to react it hit the broomstick, making it snap in half beneath her as if it were nothing more than a twig.

She barely managed to hold on to her wand as she buckled in midair and landed hard on the ground. She quickly scrambled to her feet, not paying any attention to the pain coming from her ankle as she stood, thanking Merlin she had been flying so low when the broom had been broken.

She quickly lifted her wand and spun in a small circle, ready to attack as she searched for the source of the curse. But there was nothing she could see, no Death Eater lurking in the shadows or looking for a clean shot from the cover of the trees. She turned to face the centre of the clearing, thinking perhaps what had hit her had been a stray shot aimed for someone else, but the witches and wizards duelling were too far away from her for that to be likely. She took another moment to make sure she wasn't missing anything, and then she kneeled down to heal her ankle. A quick glance at the broom told her what she already knew, flying back to Harry was now out of the question.

Standing up again, she let her gaze wander around, going through the few possible courses of action to choose from in her mind. She had to get to the other side of the clearing, but she had tried going through a battlefield already, and it had almost ended in disaster. She decided that going through the border of the clearing, although it would take more time, would be safer than trying to cross it, and after one more look around she broke into a run.

The rain was still falling, making the ground beneath her feet slippery, and she stumbled a few times, barely managing not to fall. She was so focused on getting to the other side fast, and not falling along the way, that she only saw the flash of purple flying towards her seconds before it reached her. Without missing a step, she turned to the side, cast a Shield Charm to deflect the curse, and then sent one of her own to the Death Eater attacking her, waiting just long enough to make sure it had hit him before turning back to the front.

How she hadn't seen the robed wizard standing right in front of her before she didn't know, but as soon as her gaze fell on him and moved up to his face time seemed to freeze around her, her lungs refusing to take another breath and her heart trying to beat out of her chest as she sank her heels on the wet ground so hard she lost her balance and fell.

The smirk on his face seemed to paralyze her brain as she stumbled backwards, her gaze glued to his cold eyes as she scrambled to get away from him, her movements rushed, desperate, magic completely forgotten as fear took over.

*

Only when he was sure the Death Eater was dead did Draco let himself stumble down to the floor, his breathing hard as he tried to gather some energy. The blood loss made him feel cold and weak, tired, and it was probably just the pain that was keeping him conscious and alive.

Still, he only gave himself a few seconds to recover, for he couldn't afford lying there any longer than that. Gritting his teeth to stop the pained scream from reaching his lips, he carefully turned around and crawled to the spot where he had last seen his wand, leaving a trail of blood as he moved and feeling the last bits of strength leave his burning muscles.

It was only a few feet away, but it felt as if he had had to crawl for miles to reach the wand lying on the floor, and his body seemed to give up on him just as he was about to make it. He had never felt so weak before, never been so close to being saved and so close to losing it all at the same time as he was now. But he was a fighter, if nothing else, and he wouldn't allow himself to be defeated after all that he had done.

Gritting his teeth, he shut everything out and focused only on the wand lying inches from his bloody hand, trying to force his legs to push him once more, just enough for him to reach his salvation. Even as he concentrated, he didn't think he would find the strength he needed, didn't think he had any left in him. But then he felt a faint tickle in his fingers, the barest hint of magic brought forth by desperation, and suddenly his wand was rolling right into his waiting hand.

As if in a dream, he watched his fingers wrap themselves around the wand, and with renewed strength he had no idea where had come from, he managed to turn his wand to himself. He started with the wounds on his neck, the more life-threatening ones, and then moved on to the others, the power of the Healing Charms just enough to close the wounds. He wasn't especially good with that kind of magic, but he knew enough to heal himself reasonably well, at least to get back on his feet. He just needed his body to be functional; he would take care of the rest later. If he was still around.

He had been too lucky already, had been spared too many times that night, and he knew that luck would soon run out. Still, if he was going to die tonight in the battlefield, there was one thing he needed to do first.

He could feel his strength and determination slowly return as the wounds were healed, and as soon as he was able to he stood up and walked back to Hawkins' body. Shutting off the squelching sound the movement caused, he retrieved the sword, cleaned it and sheathed it back on his belt.

Still limping slightly, he made his way out of the Dark Lord's quarters, down rooms and hallways, until he reached the entrance, and then he walked just far enough to be able to Apparate away.

The small shack, barely visible under the dim moonlight, looked dark, old, and about to crumble even from afar, and although Draco knew that inside it was in perfect condition, it was still shabby, especially considering it belonged to the Malfoy family. But the building had been created for one purpose alone, as a last resort in an emergency, and it was its size and condition that made it perfect for that. No one looking for a member of his family would ever consider the possibility of them being in a place like that, even if they went through their real state records and found out about the property. Not to mention all the protective wards around it, set and improved by generation after generation of Malfoys.

And in addition to all that, the shack was also isolated, which had made it perfect for what Draco had needed at the time. It was miles and miles away from civilization, and still the closest people around it were Muggles.

If he was honest with himself, he would rather be at the battle fighting the Dark Lord face to face than there, but there were certain things he couldn't turn his back on, and family was one of them.

No matter how angry he was at his father, how disappointed he had been to realize everything he had ever been taught was not necessarily the truth, when he had understood the great, proud and powerful Lucius Malfoy, whom he had always looked up to and followed blindly, was nothing but a slave to Voldemort, he still couldn't march to an almost certain death without first making sure he wouldn't take his father with him. Draco was the only one that knew where Lucius was, and he had left him there wandless and isolated from the world. If he were to die, no one would ever find his father, and he would die right there in the shack. No matter what Lucius had done, he couldn't let that happen.

Draco tightened his hold on his wand as he took the last few steps that separated him from the shack and reached for the doorknob, hesitating before slowly opening the door. He stopped there for a second and then stepped inside, giving his eyes a moment to adjust to the darkness as he looked around, searching for Lucius.

He had half expected his father to launch at him the moment he opened the door, or perhaps attack him in another way. He had expected the wizard to be alert and waiting, ready to take Draco down, but he was nowhere to be seen.

In the days since he had sent Lucius there, he hadn't dared enter the shack, or even get anywhere near it. He had learnt since childhood to fear his father, and that was something he couldn't just forget.

He had made sure Lucius had everything he needed, food, water, clothes, but he had used magic to send all of it, afraid of facing his father. Now, as he turned towards the small kitchen, he could see that everything he had sent was still on the table, untouched.

"Father?" Draco called hesitantly, straining his eyes to see through the darkness, but there was no response. Unease crept through his body as he waited for any sound or movement, something that proved Lucius was there.

After a moment he waved his wand towards the few lights in the shack and searched the kitchen and sitting room, beginning to worry. Had his father perhaps been injured when he had sent him there? He had been so focused on Hermione, on her wounds, that he hadn't checked; he had just gotten Lucius out of there before Severus could free himself and kill him.

The place was small, and it only took Draco a few moments to search through every room, but he didn't find Lucius. Deep down he knew his father wasn't in the shack, he had known it from the moment he had stepped inside without being attacked, but still, as soon as he was back by the entrance, he muttered, "Homenum Revelio," hoping he had missed something.

But of course, the spell revealed nothing, and the only explanation for it was that, somehow, Lucius had managed to escape. And Draco had to find him; there was no time to waste. His father knew too much, about him, about Severus, about Hermione. Draco couldn't just let him wander around. He was a powerful wizard, with many connections, and that kind of information could easily get the three of them killed, no matter who won the war.

Opening the door again, he cut the tip of his finger open, then touched the blood with his wand and muttered the words to the most powerful tracking charm he knew.

*

"I knew it was just a matter of time before I got to you again," the wizard said, his voice cold as ice.

She continued to scramble backwards, trying to get away from him, but he kept moving closer, towering over her, until her back hit a tree trunk, and she couldn't move away any more.

She wasn't the kind of person that ran away from danger, but now she just couldn't help herself. When faced with the wizard that had been so close to killing her twice before, the man, if he could be called that, who had tortured her for his own amusement, the one that had smiled in cruel pleasure as he had buried a knife into her body, again and again, she couldn't help but be terrified.

"What's the matter, Mudblood? You didn't for one moment imagine you wouldn't see me again, did you?" he asked, smirking down at her. "You should have known I would find you."

She wanted to speak, to ask how he had escaped from wherever he had been, or perhaps what he would do to her, but as her lips parted no sound came out.

"Cat got your tongue?" he teased, twirling his wand between his fingers. "I shall do the talking, then," he said, taking one step back and tilting his head, as if trying to get a better view. "Oh, the number of times I have imagined this," he said, his voice suddenly a pleased drawl, "having you at my mercy once again, making you pay for all that you have done."

The rain was still falling, and it was making it hard for her to see much, but trying to overcome the fear and think straight, she shook the wet hair out of her eyes and glanced furtively at his wand every few moments, hoping he wouldn't notice, as she waited for the right moment.

So after a few seconds, when the tip of his wand twirled dangerously around his ring finger, she knew that was it, that was when it would take him longer to grip his wand again and react, even if it still meant just a fraction of a second more. Quickly raising her own wand, she yelled, "Expelliarmus!" his eyes widening in surprise at the sudden attack.

With a quick movement he blocked her spell, staggering back a few feet, and then aimed his wand at her again, but not before she could do the only other thing she could think of, call for help. The chance that someone, in the middle of the battle, would see her call and be able to go to her was slim, but it was still better than nothing.

As the red sparks shot from her wand and into the sky he cursed loudly, taking two long steps forward and kicking her arm aside, then stepping on her wrist and pinning it to the muddy ground as he flicked his wand in mid-air, vanishing the sparks only a second or two after they had been cast.

"That was not a clever thing to do, Mudblood," he snarled, pressing harder into her wrist until she had to let go of her wand. "If some of those fools from the Order saw that and come here to help you they will die, and it will be because of you." But as he spoke he smirked, and a gleam crossed his eyes. She felt sick to see how the idea of killing more people, of killing her friends, excited him.

Still, there was nothing she could do as he kicked her wand away and turned back to her. He was right, if someone got killed trying to save her it would be her fault, but still she couldn't help but hope someone had seen her call and would come, someone powerful enough to kill him.

"So, how should this go now?" he asked, a thoughtful expression on his face as he looked down at her. "I did enjoy hearing you scream," he said, with a cruel smirk, "and I wouldn't mind hearing those lovely sounds once again. Or perhaps I should just kill you and move on. I am sure that would affect dear old Severus deeply. What do you think he would feel, if he came here to find you dead?" he asked, stepping closer to her and leaning down, so that his face was just inches away from hers as he spoke. "Perhaps something a little more dramatic would be better. I could tie you to that tree over there; that would give him a much better view when he gets here. I'd like to finish what we started last time," he told her, his eyes shining at the prospect. "You seemed to enjoy feeling the cold blade of my knife inside you."

Fear kept her frozen in place, and he looked at her in silence for a moment, waiting for her to reply; then he began twirling his wand around his fingers again, as if daring her to try something again. If he was so eager to kill her, then what was he waiting for?

"You see, getting here wasn't easy, and I had to wait for the right time. I wouldn't want to let this end too fast," he told her, as if he had read her mind. "This concerns more people than just you and me, Mudblood, and they should be here to enjoy the show."

As he spoke, she noticed something behind him. It was like a shadow, or some kind of black smoke, moving closer and closer to him. She closed her eyes for a second, hoping it was some kind of strange curse sent by someone who had seen her call for help, but when she opened them again she watched the smoke stop a few inches from his back and shoot up into the sky.

Probably noticing her distraction, he turned to the side, following her gaze just as the smoke went up. When she looked at him again, she saw the corners of his lips twitch up into a smirk.

"Now this should be interesting," he whispered, turning towards the tree line.

Not a second later, she heard the rustle of leaves and footsteps coming closer. It wasn't long before a tall wizard stepped into the clearing, his wand aimed at Lucius.

"It's good to see you again, son," Lucius said, his tone even, unsurprised, as he looked at Draco. "I was beginning to wonder if you would join us tonight. What took you so long?"

"What are you doing here, Father? How did you escape from the shack?" Draco asked, as his gaze flicked between his father and her, trying to assess the situation.

"Escape? I was hardly a prisoner, boy," Lucius snarled. "Did you think you could keep me captive by merely taking my wand? Don't you know the power that runs through my veins? Through our veins? We come from one of the most pure bloodlines still in existence, and you think you can bind my magic that easily? It took me less than a day to find my way out of the shack, and a few hours later I had a new wand already. If you thought you could stop me just by sending me away, then you are clearly more of a fool than I wanted to believe. If I had known what a disappointment you'd turn out to be…"

Lucius had turned completely towards Draco as he spoke, and using that distraction she turned around and bolted for her wand, hoping she would be fast enough. It took Lucius only a second to react, and just as she closed her fingers around the wand he took a step towards her, his boot connecting with the side of her head so hard she fell down, blinded by the pain. He kicked her on the ribs then, and she felt the air sucked out of her lungs.

"Let her go, Father. This is a family matter; she has nothing to do with it."

"I see you have spent too much time with Mudbloods already. Have you forgotten what I taught you? They," he said, kicking her wand and yanking her up by her hair, then moving his own wand to her forehead, "are not worth the air they breathe, and you choose this filthy whore over your own family?"

She felt the tip of his wand cut her skin open as it moved across her forehead and down her cheek, but she refused to scream in pain. Gritting her teeth she blinked to try to keep the blood away from her eyes as the rain washed it down, and she could see the worry in Draco's face as he watched Lucius hurt her.

"Father, stop," he yelled after a moment, his wand aimed at Lucius' head.

"This is the second time you threaten me, boy. Your own father," Lucius snarled, moving his wand away form her and aiming it at Draco. "Don't you see this Mudblood has been playing with your head? She is inferior, nothing but waste of space, and yet you let her manipulate you? You are a Pureblood, a Malfoy, and you threaten your own father for her?"

"Just let go of her, Father."

"You want her?" Lucius asked with a sneer, as he stepped to the side and yanked her to her feet. "Is she the reason why you've turned against me?"

"She? You think what I did is because of her?" Draco all but shouted. "Do you know what the Dark Lord did to me when I failed to kill Dumbledore? Do you know what he did to me when you failed him? I would be dead if aunt Bellatrix hadn't thought I could be useful for her plans."

"The Dark Lord did what he had to, gave you exactly what you deserved!" Lucius seethed. "All your life, you were given everything you ever wished for. You never wanted for anything. And yet you have become a shame to your family, a shame to your blood, and all because of her," he said, yanking her hair harder. "You are weak, Draco. It is time you learn to be a man. Crucio!" he yelled, but before the curse could reach Draco he flicked his wand, casting a Shield Charm around himself and deflecting his father's attack.

"Is that all you can do, boy?" Lucius snarled, when Draco didn't shoot back. "Is this what those blood traitors and Mudbloods have turned you into? A coward? If you threaten me with your wand, boy, you better be willing to use it."

"It doesn't have to be this way, Father."

"Oh, yes it does. But let us make this more interesting," he said, yanking her to the side, so that she was standing right next to him. "It is this filthy Mudblood you came here for tonight, and there is only one way you will get her in one piece."

"What do…"

"It is your chance to choose, boy," Lucius interrupted. "If you want her, you will have to kill me. No coward's way out, no trying to lock me up in some faraway shack. It is her or me, the Mudblood or your father. Act like a man, for once in your life."

Draco stood frozen in place for a moment, his eyes meeting hers, his expression anguished as he tried to make a decision, and she couldn't help but feel sorry for him, for the position he had been put into because of her.

As she watched him, torn between her and his father, she wanted to scream at him for help, beg him to kill Lucius, to save her, but she couldn't do it; she couldn't ask Draco, after all he had done for her, to murder his own father. She couldn't turn him into a murderer. It wasn't a fair choice for him, and she wouldn't make it any harder, so she stayed silent, hoping he would choose her, and at the same time wishing he wouldn't have to.

"Do it, boy!" Lucius shouted, and Draco's eyes snapped back at him, his wand now aimed between her and his father. "We do not have all day. What will it be?"

"I won't, Father," Draco finally said, sounding defeated, his expression apologetic as he looked at her. "I will not att-"

With a loud, angry growl, Lucius lifted his arm, aimed his wand at Draco, and shot before he even had the time to finish speaking. "Useless coward," he yelled, as the curse hit Draco on the chest, tearing his robes apart as it pushed him back, blood flying everywhere as Draco was thrown backwards, past the first line of trees and deep into the forest.

She didn't have time to react, didn't have time to even think about what had just happened, as a shot of light flew just over Lucius' shoulder from behind, barely missing him, and he turned around, yanking her with him and moving her so that she was standing right in front of him, shielding him from another attack.

"Oh, Severus, how good to see you," Lucius yelled, as he recognized the figure running towards them.

It was as if the sight of him brought her back to reality, and suddenly she could feel the fear again, the pain from her wounds, the exhaustion that was threatening to take over.

Severus' eyes locked on hers as he approached them, and her fear redoubled. Suddenly, she no longer cared about what happened to her. What if Lucius killed Severus? She wanted to yell at him to run, to get away form them, to leave her there and go somewhere safe, but she knew he would never listen. Just as she wouldn't, if the situation was reversed.

"Let go of her, Lucius," Severus said, lifting his wand, ready to attack again.

"I am getting tired of hearing that, old friend."

"What are you doing here?"

"We had a score to settle. You didn't think I would forget, did you? You know me better than that."

"What do you want?"

"I want justice. I want you dead, and I want her dead. And I want the Dark Lord to see the truth, to know it was you who betrayed him."

"Then why didn't you go to him before now? Why go through all this trouble?" Severus asked, a calmness in his tone that made him more threatening.

"I would not make the same mistake twice, Severus. When I go to the Dark Lord, I will take proof of your betrayal. Then I will be given the honours I deserve."

"The Dark Lord will be defeated tonight, Lucius. There will be nothing for you to go back to."

"That's a lie, and you know it," Lucius snarled, lifting his wand and aiming it back at Severus. "The Dark Lord will win; it is a pity you will not live to see that."

She realized he was about to attack Severus and pushed Lucius' arm to the side, the curse missing him by an inch. With an angry growl Lucius flicked his wand in her direction, and suddenly she felt more tired than she ever had before. Her entire body felt heavy, and just as she was about to fall to the ground Lucius moved his arm to her waist, keeping her between Severus and himself. Through half-lidded eyes she saw Lucius aim his wand at Severus again, and this time there was nothing she could do to help him. Lucius' first shot was powerful, but Severus managed to deflect it. The second one missed. The third hit him on one leg. He was trying to defend himself, but he wasn't attacking Lucius.

"Severus!" Hermione tried to yell, but it came out as little more than a whisper. She tried to make her muscles work, tried to fight whatever spell Lucius had used on her, but it was harder by the second. "Severus, kill him," she begged, knowing if he didn't Lucius would kill him, and he froze for a second, hesitant, his gaze on her. She knew he wanted to shoot back, to kill Lucius, she could see it in his eyes, but he wouldn't attack while she was standing between them. Another curse shot from Lucius' wand, hitting Severus' shoulder, almost making him drop his wand. "Severus," she cried, trying to gather some strength to fight Lucius. "Severus, he'll kill you!"

"Oh, this will be fun," she heard Lucius say by her ear, and then he laughed loudly when another curse hit Severus. She knew she had to do something or he would kill them both. Severus wouldn't attack Lucius while she was standing between them, so she had to somehow get out of the way or they would both die. If only it were that easy.

But then Severus moved his wand a fraction of an inch to the side, and when he shot again his spell hit her, and suddenly she felt awake again, all her muscles responding. She instantly started to struggle against Lucius' hold, twisting as hard as she could, trying to elbow him, kick him, anything to make it impossible for the wizard to hold her and aim right at the same time. She kept fighting him until he couldn't hold her any more, and as soon as his grip loosened she leaned forward, hit him on the ribs and bit down hard on his arm. The pain distracted him, and he yanked his arm away from her without thinking.

The second she was free, she dropped to the ground and scrambled for her wand, turning around and aiming it at Lucius just in time to see Severus' curse hit him square on the chest.

With eyes as hard as stone Severus stepped forward, flicked his wand again, and suddenly Lucius was floating mid-air.

"You should have stayed away when you had the chance," Severus said with barely controlled anger, then moved his arm to the side and Lucius crashed against a tree so hard not even his pained scream could drown the sound of bone snapping. "You should have thanked your son for saving you and forgotten all about her," he said, moving his arm to the other side, sending Lucius against another tree. "You should have known better than to anger me, Lucius."

As Severus walked towards Lucius he flicked his wand, and a long slash appeared on the wizard's chest, then another, and another, and she wondered how he could still be alive.

"I told you to stay away from her, and you didn't listen," he hissed, twisting his wand just slightly, making Lucius double in pain. She couldn't remember ever seeing Severus so angry.

"You will pay for what you did," Severus told Lucius, taking a step back. He lifted his wand and twisted it, lifting Lucius higher and higher, and then letting him fall loudly a few feet from where she was.

She saw Severus' eyes flash with hatred, felt the air thick with his power, and for the first time in so long she felt a hint of fear of him. She knew she shouldn't, that he was only protecting her, but the cruelness he was showing Lucius rivalled with the one the wizard had shown her.

And then she found herself calling his name, ready to beg him to stop. He turned to her, and the fear he saw on her face brought him back to reality.

"You are lucky she is here," Severus told Lucius, although she wasn't sure the wizard could hear him anymore. "Otherwise, this would have continued for hours." Without another word, Severus raised his wand again, the green light of the Killing Curse hitting Lucius, his laboured gasps and pained groans silenced at last.

She stayed frozen in place, her eyes locked on the bloodied figure of the man that had gone there to kill her, so dazed she couldn't even hear Severus' voice calling her name.

She felt, more than saw, Severus kneel beside her, and then his hands were on her arms, gently pulling her up to her feet, and before she knew what was happening she had her arms around him, holding on to him as if that alone would prevent the world from crumbling around her. The fear she had felt before vanished when he wrapped his arms around her, pulling her to him. He made her feel safe, protected, and that was all she needed right then.

He held her as tightly as she was holding him, as if he were afraid to let go, and she was unable to control the sobs that escaped her, all the fear and pain from what had happened and the relief of him being there mixing inside of her, emotions taking over.

"It's all right, it's over. He's dead, he won't hurt you again," Severus whispered into her ear, trying to calm her, and she had the impression that he was telling that to himself as much as her. "You are safe now."

She let him hold her, protect her for a few moments, but then she started to calm down, and reality came crashing back down. There was no time for comfort, no time to relax. They were still in the middle of a battle, and her brain started working again. She would have wanted to stay there with him, to hold on to him for the rest of her life, feeling safe, but she knew that was not an option.

"Draco," she muttered, the first thing that came to mind as she tried to put her thoughts back in Order, and Severus' hold on her loosened as he leaned back. "He was here," she added, seeing Severus' confused expression. "Lucius attacked him, I have to help him, I have to-"

"Did Lucius hurt you?" Severus asked her, and she shook her head slowly. "Not much, at least," she added, when Severus' eyes fell on the blood still on her face.

Severus pulled back, keeping his eyes on hers, trying to see the truth in them, find out if she was telling the truth, if she was all right, and she had to look away. She couldn't afford to be vulnerable, not anymore.

"He could've killed you," she said, as she felt his fingers trail the side of her face, healing the lines Lucius had carved into her skin.

"I can take care of myself," he replied, taking a step back, moving his wand down her body, searching for more wounds. "I should have killed him when I had the chance," he said, almost to himself, a hint of anger back in his voice.

"It doesn't matter anymore," she told him, and couldn't stop herself from glancing back to where Lucius' body had fallen, needing to make sure he was really dead, that he wouldn't hurt her again.

Tightening her hold on her wand, she took one last deep, calming breath and then stepped away from Severus, turning around and walking away.

"Where are you going?" Severus asked her, his hand on her wrist stopping her before she could go far.

"Draco's there, I have to help him."

"There could be Death Eaters there."

"I don't care. He got hurt trying to help me, I will not leave him there to die."

Severus looked at her thoughtfully for a moment, trying to decide what to do, but when she tried to turn again he tightened his hold on her wrist. "Where is he?"

"He was thrown into the woods over there," she told him, pointing at the trees spluttered with his blood.

"Stay here, I'll go."

"I'll go with you," she said, trying to follow when he started walking.

"No, you'll stay here, I'll go find him."

"But…"

"Do you think you can be of more help than I?" he asked, and she shook her head. "If you want me to help him, you will stay here and wait. I don't want you wandering back into the woods where any Death Eater can find you."

She wanted to argue, wanted to go with him to see Draco, to make sure he was still live, but she knew Severus was serious, he really wouldn't help him unless she did as he asked, and every minute that passed could be the last one for Draco, so she reluctantly nodded her head and waited, wand at the ready in case someone found her there.

As the minutes passed she did her best to keep her eyes away from the figure lying just a few yards away from her, but it was almost impossible. After everything that had happened, everything Lucius Malfoy had done to her, it was hard to believe he was really dead, that he would never come back and hurt her again, but the relief that knowledge brought was obscured by the way he had died. The pained sounds he had made when Severus had cursed him, his blood dripping to the ground from the slashes crossing his chest, those moments were etched on her brain as permanently as those of all the things he had done to her.

The sound of ruffling leaves startled her, and she spun around, lifting her wand and firing before even seeing what had caused the noise. Severus was just stepping out of the woods, his expression one of surprise as he saw her raised wand and reacted, barely managing to block her attack.

"I'm sorry, I… you startled me," she said, trying to calm her nerves as she walked to him.

He didn't reply, instead he waited until she reached him. She noticed his expression was guarded, and saw he had blood in his hands.

"Draco," she whispered. "Did you find him?" she asked urgently, and he nodded.

"The curse Lucius had used against him was a very powerful one, and he was barely alive when I found him," he said, and she felt tears come to her eyes as she waited for him to tell her what had happened. "I healed him as much as possible, but there was not much I could do without my potions. I sent him back to headquarters, but I don't know if they will be able to do for him at the Order. There are probably dozens of wounded there, and even if they could pay full attention to him…"

"No," she said, shaking her head slightly. "There has to be a way, there has to be something…"

"Perhaps you should go back to the Order as well, make sure they do their best to save him," he said, even though she could see in his eyes that he didn't like the idea of her going to Draco.

"I can't go, I won't leave until this is over," she told him. She was worried about Draco, but there were things more important. She had to find Harry, had to help him defeat Voldemort.

"You will be safer there."

"I don't need to be safe, I need to be here; I need to help the Order, help Harry."

"Potter has all the help he needs. I doubt you staying here will make any difference."

"I'm not leaving, Severus," she said, hoping he would hear the resolve in her tone. "Please, don't make this any harder than it has to be."

"This is a mistake."

"Would you leave? Would you leave everyone here and go?" she asked. She knew he wouldn't, and he knew it as well. He understood her need to fight, she could see it clearly on his face, and she wouldn't give him time to think up more arguments to get her away.

He looked at her for a few moments, as if giving her another chance to change her mind, and then turned around and started walking.

"Come, then. We have to hurry."


	64. the last battle V

As he carefully approached the opposite end of the clearing, with Hermione close behind him, Severus could feel the air dense with magic, and he could sense the Dark Lord's anger from afar. That had to be a good sign.

The last time he had seen Voldemort, he had been about to kill Hermione, and when Charlie Weasley had flown by and saved her, Severus had only waited long enough to see that Potter wasn't too hurt to fight for himself before going after the dragon, needing to make sure she was really safe.

Now he could see Potter had not only managed to fight Voldemort, but he had also managed to stay alive this long. Surprising indeed. Perhaps the boy wasn't such a lost cause as he had feared, after all.

Of course, Potter had had help, that much was clear from the bodies lying around the Dark Lord. How many had died to save him? How many more would die before he finally killed Voldemort? Was he even capable of doing that? Was this child strong enough to defeat the most powerful wizard the world had known?

During the hours that had passed since the battle had begun Severus had seen more death than he could ever remember seeing before, not even in the first war, and that was certainly saying something. He had killed so many Death Eaters he had lost count long before then, and he had no idea how many supporters the Order had already lost.

His plan had worked for the most part, he had made sure of that, going from one fight to the other, helping the Order members and hunting down and killing any Death Eater that managed to escape the fight before they could reach Voldemort. Their only chance of winning was by crushing all the support groups the Dark Lord was counting on, taking them by surprise before they could make it to the main battle, keeping them away from Potter, and they had managed to do that quite well.

But now it all came down to one boy, and what he could or could not do against Voldemort himself, and as Severus moved as close to the clearing as he could without being seen, it seemed to him Potter would never make it on his own.

He took a moment to look around, trying to find a place for Hermione to stay, somewhere she would be safe, some place where no Death Eater would find her. The trees were the only thing that offered any kind of cover, so he made his way back into the forest, going far enough so that she wouldn't be able to see the fight, or the dead Order members.

"Stay here," he said, once he found the perfect spot, just behind a large tree.

"What?"

"Stay here, I'll be back."

"I'm not staying here," she said, and he could hear the confusion and anger in her voice. "Harry's out there, and he needs my help."

"Potter has all the help he needs."

"I didn't stay here just to stand idly aside and let others fight, I won't…"

"I don't know who is out there, or what has happened since I left.," he interrupted. "I need you to stay here while I go assess the situation. I cannot be out there and look after you at the same time."

"I don't need you to look after me," she said hotly, "I can take care of myself."

He wanted to tell her that wasn't true, remind her of how Charlie Weasley had had to save her from Voldemort, or how he had saved her from Lucius, but he knew that wouldn't help. If he said that, it would only lead to a fight, and that was the last thing either of them needed.

He was tempted to skip the arguments and just send her back to headquarters, but he knew her well enough to know she would find a way to come back; at least this way he could keep an eye on her.

Taking a step closer to her, he lifted his hand and caressed her cheek. "I almost lost you twice already tonight," he said softly. "I need you to stay here while I am gone. I will come back as soon as I know what is happening."

"Severus, I can't…"

"I need to know you'll be safe," he said, almost pleadingly, silencing the last of her protests.

He might be playing dirty, but he was a Slytherin after all, and as his eyes met hers he knew it had worked.

"Be careful," she said, covering his hand with hers for a moment, then she took a step back. "Hurry."

"Stay here," he said once more, then turned around and walked to the edge of the clearing, careful to stay behind the cover of the trees.

Voldemort was standing near where Severus was, and he was duelling both Potter and Moody at the same time. Severus could see the two of them were putting up quite a fight, but it was clear to him that the Dark Lord was going to win. Those bloody Order members, so self righteous and noble, would never resort to the kind of magic needed to defeat a wizard like Lord Voldemort.

He watched them for a few moments, unsure of what to do. A part of him wanted to take action, to take on Voldemort himself, like he had wanted to for years, but Dumbledore's words echoed in his mind again. The wizard had wanted Potter to have his chance at fighting Voldemort, he had wanted to give the boy a chance to fulfil that fateful prophecy made so many years before.

For years, Severus had asked Dumbledore to let him kill Voldemort, and every single time the wizard had told him to wait, had told him that it wasn't time yet. It had taken Severus a long time to find out about the Horcruxes, and only then did he see a reason behind Dumbledore's decision; only then did he realize how little would have been won if he had attempted to kill Voldemort before destroying all the Horcruxes, and how much could have been lost.

Dumbledore had known that, like he had known many things, and rarely did he share them with anyone, and now, as he watched Potter block and dodge curse after curse, he wondered if perhaps there was also a reason why Dumbledore had insisted it should be the boy who fought the Dark Lord. He had asked Severus to protect Potter, to teach him, but he had also believed in that prophecy that marked him as the only one who could defeat Lord Voldemort.

No matter how the old wizard had manipulated and used Severus over the years, a part of him still believed in Dumbledore, and it was because of that he decided to give Potter a chance to fulfil his destiny.

Still not sure he was making the right decision, Severus Disillusioned himself, tore his eyes from the battle and focused on his surroundings. If he was going to give the boy a chance, then he had to sure no more Death Eaters would get to him before he could finish what he was meant to do. He could see many witches and wizards fighting on the clearing, but he focused on the group closest to them, the ones that posed the biggest threat.

Not far from where he was standing he saw five Death Eaters in a circle, looming over some Order members. He could see the Death Eaters were talking to the Order members, although he couldn't hear what they were saying from there. As he started moving closer, one of the Death Eaters took a step forward, raised his wand, and cast the Killing Curse. Before the wizard's body had hit the ground Severus was running, trying not to make much noise as he got closer, aiming his wand at the Death Eater closest to him and killing him instantly, attracting the others' attention at the same time.

"Who's there?" one of the Death Eaters yelled, as they all turned in the direction the attack had come from, looking around, trying to find the source of the curse, but Severus was already running around the group, cursing another one before they could even see him and moving on to the next.

He had a better view of the Order members now, and he saw a few of them were lying down, although he couldn't tell if they were dead or just unconscious, and from what he could see, they were all unarmed.

As the Death Eaters turned and dispersed, looking for Severus, one of the Order members jumped up and tackled the one closest to him, then reached for a rock and hit him on the head with it, but the sudden movement brought the other two Death Eaters' attention back to them.

Before Severus could do anything to stop them, one of the Death Eaters turned to the wizard, aiming his wand and casting the Killing Curse, just as the other one turned to the rest of the Order members.

Severus knew he wouldn't be able to stop them both, so without time to make a better choice, he aimed his wand at the Death Eater closest to where he was standing and fired, but just as he did another curse shot right by him and hit the other one, killing him.

He quickly turned around, trying to see who had cast the curse, and he saw Kingsley running towards them, as fast as his legs would take him, his wand ready as his eyes searched their surroundings, looking for another threat.

There was another Death Eater running behind Kingsley, and Severus realized he wouldn't see him in time. He saw the masked wizard raise his wand as he ran, and just as he was about to curse Kingsley Severus attacked.

With reflexes that surprised him, he watched the Death Eater block his curse before it reached him, his attention still focused on his target, not even searching for the one attacking him as he ran; then, as he got closer to Kingsley, he cast the Killing Curse with a practiced swirl of his wand.

Severus knew he was still too far away from Kingsley to get him out of the way fast enough, and there was no way to block the curse, so in one fluent motion he activated some of the Order members' Portkeys, sending the ones that were still alive back to headquartes, and then turned to Kingsley.

Using the most powerful spell he dared, he aimed his wand at the Auror's feet and fired.

The spell hit the ground just in time, making it explode right before Kingsley, sending him flying a few feet to the side, the Killing Curse barely missing him.

The second he saw Kingsley hadn't been hit by the curse, his attention went back to the Death Eater, just as he turned to where he was standing. Severus stood still for a moment, waiting to see what the man would do before taking action.

The Death Eater looked hesitant for a moment, as his eyes searched his surroundings, and then he turned away from him. Just as Severus was lifting his wand, ready to kill him, the wizard turned back around, aimed his wand at exactly the spot where Severus was standing and fired.

Surprised by the sudden attack, Severus barely managed to block the curse, staggering a few feet backwards, and the Death Eater's cold laughter told him he had just given his position away.

"Who are you? Show yourself!" the Death Eater yelled, and Severus instantly recognized the voice.

"It's me, Lestrange," he yelled back, lifting the Disillusionment Charm. If he openly attacked Rabastan Lestrange, he wouldn't get away unharmed. He would have to buy himself some time and find another way to kill him.

"Disillusionment Charms under the rain, Snape? You should know better. It took me only a second to spot you there," Rabastan said, as he removed his mask.

"The charm was good enough to fool those," Severus replied nonchalantly, nodding his head in the dead Order members' direction, noticing Rabastan had yet to lower his wand.

"Care to explain why you got in my way just now?" Rabastan asked, pointing at the hole Severus had left on the ground.

"Just thought I'd do you a favour," he said, with a small shrug.

"A favour?"

"Do you know who that is?" Severus asked, stepping closer to where Kingsley had fallen, careful not to turn his back to Rabastan as he moved.

"He is an Order member," Rabastan replied briskly, "hence my trying to kill him."

"Oh, but he's not just any Order member," Severus said, moving closer to Kingsley and kicking his wand away. "This one," he explained, "is also the head of the Auror department. Rennervate!" he said, and watched Kingsley's eyes slowly flutter open.

"Is that so?" Rabastan asked, a wicked gleam on his eyes as he took a step forward, towering over Kingsley. "Still, I fail to see how you preventing me from killing him qualifies as a favour."

"I thought perhaps you would like to have some more fun before killing him," he said, feeling Kingsley's confused gaze on him. "He is, after all, the one responsible for what happened to your brother and his wife."

"Interesting," he said thoughtfully, but Severus saw him tighten his hold on the wand still aimed at his chest. "The curious thing is that you, Severus Snape, never liked my brother, and you despised Bellatrix, so why would you care about what happened to them, and why would you want to do me a favour?"

"Perhaps you're not the only one that would enjoy watching him suffer," he replied after a moment, changing tactics.

"Care to elaborate on that?"

"He has made my job as a spy at the Order quite difficult."

"Has he now?" he asked, his gaze flicking back to Kingsley for a moment. "The thing is, Severus, that I have known you for many years. If what you are telling me was true, you would have let me kill him and moved on, yet you saved him from my curse, so why don't you tell me the real reason why you want him alive?"

"I don't want him alive, but I do not want him dying so easily either. If you know me as well as you say you do, then you should know I do not appreciate others taking what is mine."

Rabastan looked at him quizzically for a moment, and then turned to Kingsley, understanding dawning on his face after a moment.

"The witch," he said, and Severus merely nodded. "I was led to believe your relationship with her was just a means to an end. Didn't you seduce her so you could use her to spy on the Order? Or perhaps there is more between you and that Mudblood."

"I am surprised you would even consider that possibility," Severus said, doing his best to sound disgusted at the mere idea. "I do not care about her in the least, but I still don't appreciate others trying to take what is mine," he added, turning to Kingsley.

"You treacherous bastard," Kingsley seethed, and it seemed to be just what Rabastan needed to believe him. "I will kill you!" he yelled to Severus, and both he and Rabastan laughed.

"Do you see now why I wanted him to die slowly?" Severus asked, taking a step closer to the Auror. "I will thoroughly enjoy this," he said, then aimed his wand at Kingsley. "Crucio!"

Rabastan laughed delightedly as he watched Kingsley writhe in pain, and when he lifted the curse the Death Eater took a step forward, kicking Kingsley on the ribs before aiming his wand at him.

"Crucio," he said between laughs, and just then Severus turned and yelled, "Avada Kedavra!"

As soon as Rabastan's body hit the ground Severus turned around, trying to make sure no one had seen him kill the Death Eater. He could hear Kingsley panting on the ground as he tried to recover from the curse, and as soon as his breathing slowed Severus stepped forward, leaned down and offered his hand to the Auror.

Kingsley looked at him for a moment, hesitant, and then he took Severus' hand and let him help him back to his feet.

"Thanks. For a moment there, I thought you were actually going to kill me," Kingsley said with a half smile, as he tried to spell the mud off his robes.

"For a moment there, I was," Severus replied, just loud enough for Kingsley to hear him. Holding back a smirk, he turned around and started walking away.

"Where are you going?"

"To help Potter," he said, glancing at the dead Order members. "I don't care what that prophecy said; it's time for this to end."

*

She tried to wait like she had promised Severus she would, tried to stay there, wait for him to return, but it was too hard. How could she just stay there, be "safe" when she knew her friends were out there, fighting for their lives, when she knew that perhaps she could do something to help them?

She took the first step forward, telling herself one little step didn't mean a thing. Her eyes searched the woods, following the direction Severus had taken, and she took another step, then another. What difference did a few steps make, after all? She was still there, where he had left her.

The same excuse worked for the forth and fifth step, and by the time she took the sixth one the first sounds of the battle, faint but still audible, reached her ears. What she had promised Severus didn't matter any more; they needed her help out there, and she couldn't wait another minute.

Tightening her hold on her wand she kept walking, letting the sounds guide her to the battle, keeping an eye on her surroundings at the same time, not wanting a Death Eater to catch her unaware again.

She was walking hurriedly now, and after just a few moments she reached the edge of the forest. The sight before her made her freeze in place.

Voldemort was on the other side of the clearing, duelling Harry and Moody, but it wasn't the fierce battle that caught her attention; it was the bodies scattered all around her.

As much as she wanted to avoid it, she couldn't stop her gaze from moving from one figure to the next, but she couldn't recognize any of them from where she was standing.

As if of their own accord, her feet carried her to the figure closest to her, and with a trembling hand she reached forward, touching the body's shoulder just enough to push it back and see who it was.

She cringed when her gaze fell on the completely disfigured face, but then the arm caught her attention. The sleeve was shredded, and the Dark Mark clearly visible. It wasn't an Order member, it was a Death Eater.

But the relief she felt was short lived; there were still many more bodies there, and there was no way they would all belong to Death Eaters.

As if in a trance, she moved on to the body next to it. The face didn't look familiar, but the dead eyes still held a hint of gold in them, and from the look of the werewolf's hands and arms, it seemed as if it had been him who had disfigured the other Death Eater.

Everything around her seemed to vanish as she moved from one figure to the next. She no longer heard the sounds of the battle or thought of the dangers of her being there, she just looked at one figure, then another, finding more familiar faces than she had expected. There were Aurors there, some she knew from the training sessions at headquarters, others she only recognized by their clothes.

There were civilians there as well, just regular witches and wizards who had joined the Order only weeks before with the same foolish hope they all had in common; the possibility of creating a better world, a better future. Now they all lay there, on the muddy ground under the rain, their eyes vacant, their futures lost.

A part of her was glad she wasn't one of them, that she was still alive, still fighting, but another part wondered why she had been saved. What made her better than any of them? Why was she still alive and all those others were dead?

The softest of groans broke through the haze in her mind and she froze for a second. She lifted her head, just enough to see around her, expecting to find a group of Death Eaters, but there was no one standing there.

She wondered if perhaps she had imagined it, but then she heard it again, the sound weaker than before. It was coming from one of the figures lying around her, it had to be.

She stood up on shaky legs and held her breath, waiting to hear the sound again. It came from her left.

She ran to the side, slipping a few times before reaching a group of four bodies.

"Hello?" she whispered softly, reaching for each figure in turn, her heart hammering in her chest as she tried to find someone still alive. Then she noticed the head of the witch in front of her move slightly, the movement so small it was a miracle she had seen it.

"Hello, can you hear me?" she asked, crawling next to her. The side of her face was burnt, and when she pushed her back she saw a deep wound on her chest, blood seeping from her body fast. Her skin was cold to the touch, and her heartbeats were faint. She was still alive, but just barely.

Hermione wasn't sure there was much they could do for her at headquarters, but she had to try, she couldn't just leave her there. She reached inside the witch's robes, frantically searching for the Portkey, but it was nowhere to be found.

The sound of her name whispered softly from afar distracted her, and she stopped moving.

"Hermione," the voice called again, in a pained groan. It was clear the sound wasn't coming from the witch by her side. "Don't hel…" she heard next, the voice barely familiar but too soft and weak to be recognizable.

She sat back on her heels and turned her head to the side, trying to see who was talking. Something inside told her it was important. A pained groaned came next, and as she tried to stand and follow the sound the witch lying beside her whispered something, her arm shooting up, her hand wrapped tightly around her wrist, keeping her in place.

"Help," the woman said in a pained tone, but Hermione didn't move. She was frozen in place, her gaze glued to the hand holding her down, to the Dark Mark now visible on the witch's forearm.

The fingers tightened around her wrist, showing a strength she hadn't thought the wounded woman capable of, nails sinking into her flesh as she was pulled down, and she recoiled, as if she had been burnt. The woman was a Death Eater.

"Kill her." The same voice from before. "You have to k…" But the phrase was left unfinished.

She stood up, looked into the woman's eyes, and saw the pain and fear in them. But what could she do?

A part of her screamed inside her mind that she should help her, that it was a human being, and she couldn't leave her there to die. But the woman was a Death Eater, a witch loyal to Voldemort. She had gone to the woods that night ready and willing to murder her and her friends, and everyone that got in their way. How many people had she killed already?

The logical part of her brain told her that if the situation were reversed, the woman would have killed her already, without hesitation. But could she do the same?

Before she could make a decision she heard her name being called again. Whoever was calling her knew her, and needed her help. She wouldn't risk someone else's life by just standing there indecisively. She would find who was calling her and help them. She would not do anything about the Death Eater until them; not harm her, nor help her. If after that the witch was still alive, she would do her best to save her, and then make sure she wouldn't hurt anyone else. That was the best she could offer in that situation

Having reached a decision, she took a step away from her, ears strained as she tried to hear the voice again, to find where it had come from. Movement caught her eye, and a glimpse was more than enough to tell her who was there. She couldn't see much of the person that had moved from where she was standing, but there was no mistaking the bubble-gum pink hair.

"Tonks!" she screamed, everything else momentarily forgotten as she ran to the witch and kneeled beside her. Tonks' eyes were closed, but this close she could hear her laboured breathing. "Tonks, can you hear me?" and the witch nodded just slightly.

Hermione reached forward and touched Tonks' face. Her skin was so hot it could almost burn her hand. She couldn't see any wounds on her body, not external at least, but there were dozens of spells or curses that could have caused such a high fever.

She tried a quick Cooling Charm, the first thing that came to mind, and it seemed to help. Her breathing seemed to slow down to a more normal pace, and her eyes opened slowly.

"Hermione," she whispered, her voice slightly stronger than it had been before. "The witch, she's a Death Eater."

"I know, I saw the…"

"You have to stop her," she interrupted.

"It's all right, Tonks. She's hurt, she's not going anywhere." Hermione tried to reassure her, but she wasn't listening.

"She killed them," she whispered. "She killed them all." Her eyes fluttered closed again, as if she were too tired to keep them open. The Cooling Charm was starting to wear off, and the temperature was rising again. "You have to kill her or she'll kill you." She glanced back at the Death Eater for a moment, and then turned back to Tonks. She had opened her eyes again, and had turned her head to the side, the sorrow in her expression so deep it made Hermione fear what she might see. But still, she followed her gaze and gasped in horror, her face instantly filling with tears.

From where she was kneeling she could see more figures, piled up into some kind of mound, as if they had wanted to keep their killings all together. A few of the figures had their heads turned her way. There was a werewolf among them, his dead eyes still holding a hint of gold, and an Auror she knew from the training sessions. She had always been nice to her, always friendly, smiling. Now there was only his body left, crushed beneath the others. She leaned involuntarily to the side, needing to see who else was there.

She recognized another man, one of the two that had started a fight a few days before at headquarters, and a blond wizard that couldn't be a day older than she was, although she couldn't remember having seen him at Hogwarts. What on earth had he been doing there? Then another figure caught her attention, and she felt her hands start to shake. All she could see was a glimpse of red from afar, but that was enough. There was only one family with hair that red.

Tears streaked down her cheeks and mixed with the light rain. She blinked fast, trying to clear her vision, torn between moving closer to see who it was and turning away, afraid of what she might see. As if of their own accord, her legs started to move, pushing her up, trying to get her on her feet, but a hand around her arm stopped her.

"Hermione," Tonks groaned, her fingers tightening just slightly on her arm, as if she were using the last of her strength to stop her, and the sound of the witch desperately gasping for breath somehow made her tear her eyes from the gory scene. Whatever curse they had cast on her, it was chocking her, killing her. She had to do something.

"We have to get you out of here," Hermione said, forcing the images she'd just seen away, if only for a moment. She had to focus on Tonks now. She reached inside Tonks' pocket and searched for the Portkey. It only took her a few seconds to find it, and she quickly pulled it out and slipped the chain around her wrist. She stood up and took a step back.

"They'll take care of you at headquarters, everything will be all right," she whispered, trying to sound reassuring. Then she activated the Portkey.

Tonks had only just vanished when the spell hit her. It hadn't been powerful enough to kill, but it still hurt as hell.

She fell backwards from the force of it and rolled around on the floor, turning to the Death Eater running towards her just in time to react and block the next attack. But the wizard kept running as he shot, and she couldn't block his attacks and get up at the same time. It only took the man a few moments to reach her.

He was looming over her, throwing curse after curse, weakening her Shield Charm fast, draining her strength. He was about to break through it when a spell hit him, and he staggered a few feet back.

Surprised, Hermione let her gaze flick to the side for a moment, in the direction the spell had come from. McGonagall was standing yards away from her, recognizable even from afar, anger and determination clear on her face. From what she could see, part of her robes were shredded, and a side of her face was covered in blood, but she still stood tall, her wand aimed at the Death Eater's chest.

She watched the witch move her arm and fire, and the Death Eater did the same. One shot of red light, one shot of green light, flying irrevocably towards one another.

It took barely a second for the curses to cross midway, then they continued their way towards its target. Severus had been right, the Order didn't stand a chance if they weren't willing to use the same curses as the Death Eaters did, but now it was too late.

The red light hit first, a powerful Stunning Spell, and the Death Eater dropped to the ground. The next second the Killing Curse hit McGonagall, and she fell.

"No!" Hermione yelled, scrambling to her feet. With tears falling freely down her face as she started running to the other end of the clearing, towards the woman that had been her teacher, her mentor, the woman that had just saved her life, and given up her own in the process.

She had only managed to take a few steps when a large body ran into her, a strong arm wrapping around her waist, yanking her back. She struggled, kicked, anything to get away, to keep running to her, but she wasn't strong enough.

"Let go of me!" she yelled, but the hold just tightened.

A second arm moved to her shoulder and turned her around, then she was pulled towards the man holding her, arms surrounding her, almost cradling.

"It's too late," a voice whispered into her ear, and the arms tightened to stop the struggles. She knew the voice, knew the body holding her. Even through the pain and confusion she knew who it was, and stopped fighting him. "There's nothing you can do for her," Severus said, and she leaned against him, feeling defeated. She felt his heart beating wildly against her chest, almost as fast as her own. "If you cross that clearing to get to her, the Dark Lord will see you, and he will kill you."

"She was just trying to help me, and he killed her," she said into his chest, her voice weak, broken.

"She did it to save your life. She didn't want you to die, but if you cross that clearing now, that is exactly what will happen. You need to calm down," he said, as his fingers ran through her hair, soothing.

"Severus," someone called. It was a woman, and her voice sounded both weak and angry at the same time.

She felt Severus stiffen slightly, and tilted her head to the side to see the Death Eater she had seen earlier had somehow managed to stand and had her wand aimed at them. Her robes were dripping blood, and there was a deep, large gash on her abdomen, but somehow she still managed to stand almost straight and keep her wand steady.

She had expected to see pain in her expression, weakness, but instead there was only hatred, as if that was the only thing stopping her from falling back down.

"You treacherous bastard," the witch seethed, and she felt Severus' arm move around her, his hand tightening around his wand, but trying not to make his movements too obvious.

She tightened her fingers around her wand too, ready to do what she should have done before. She should have killed the Death Eater when she'd had the chance. She hadn't been able to curse the woman when she was down, and now they could both die because of that.

She realized that was probably one of the main reasons Voldemort's Death Eaters had gather so much strength in so little time. They were willing to do things any other witch or wizard wouldn't. They didn't hesitate to kill, and that gave them enough advantage over the rest of the Wizarding World to defeat them all. It was a war, and there was no room for mercy. She wouldn't make the same mistake twice.

The witch's lips parted, and at the same time she stepped away from Severus, both wands aimed at the Death Eater, but before any of them could fire, a shot of green light came from the side and hit the witch. Before they knew what was happening, the witch was dead.

They both turned in the direction the killing curse had come from, and they saw Kingsley running towards them, wand still in front of him as he moved.

"There's a group of Death Eaters coming," he said, as he reached them. "We only have a few moments before they get here." Then his eyes turned to her, a look of concern on his face as he looked her up and down. She didn't even want to imagine what she might look like. "Are you all right?" he asked. She just nodded in response. "Thanks for the help," she said, and he smiled at her.

A loud bang startled them all, and they turned to the clearing just in time to see the ground around Voldemort explode, a curtain of white smoke hiding him from view for a few seconds. When the air cleared, they saw Mad Eye Moody lying on the ground, surrounded by blood.

They saw Voldemort turn to Harry then, and fire another curse. She could see Harry's surprised expression even from afar, see him lift his arms over his head, as if trying to cover himself, wandless, defenceless. But Voldemort's curse didn't reach him. It hit an invisible barrier inches away from his body, magic dissipating as soon as it reached the shield.

Voldemort roared in anger, sending another curse, and then another, all stopped by the shield while Harry searched for his wand.

It took her a few moments to feel the power around her, and she turned, confused, to find Severus' arm raised, his wand aimed at Harry, his face strained with the effort of trying to make the protection hold long enough.

Loud voices startled her, and she looked at Kingsley.

"They're here," he said, but he wasn't talking to her.

"Can you hold them back?" Severus asked.

"There's too many of them; I won't be able to buy you much time."

"Call for back up, then. Just hold them back."

"If I do that the Death Eaters will know exactly where we are."

"Do it," Severus said. Kingsley hesitated for a moment, then, with a sigh, he raised his wand, red sparks shooting into the stormy sky.

Severus looked at her for a moment, hesitant, as if trying to decide where she would be safer, then said, "Stay with him and help him hold the Death Eaters back until more Order members come. Then get out of here." Without giving her time to reply, he spoke to Kingsley. "Hold them back and keep her safe. I have to go help Potter." Without another word, he turned around and ran into the clearing.

*

As Severus ran, Voldemort managed to break through the shield. He could see Potter had finally found his wand and was lifting it against the Dark Lord, but even from afar Severus could feel the fight had drained the boy's power, and so could Voldemort. With a wicked gleam, the wizard took a step back.

Severus stopped running and started moving closer more cautiously. Voldemort hadn't seen him yet, there was no need to make his presence known before time and lose the element of surprise.

"Well, well, well," Voldemort said, taking another small step back and throwing a minor curse at Potter. He could tell it wasn't a powerful one, and let the boy deflect it himself. The Dark Lord was playing with him, and while he was distracted Severus could move closer.

"It seems it's just you and me now, Harry," Voldemort said, deflecting Potter's half-hearted attack. The boy was still trying to recover some of his strength. "I told you it would come to this," he said. "Now most of your friends are dead, and it is just a matter of time before the rest of you join them. Was fighting me really worth all this?"

Potter didn't reply, instead he tried to attack again.

"You are too weak to hurt me," Voldemort said, sounding pleased. "Give up now, and your death will be quick."

Potter shook his head. Voldemort's eyes gleamed, as if that was the answer he had been hoping for.

"Crucio," he said, in a low, menacing tone. The curse hit Potter and he screamed in pain.

Severus stepped closer, standing right behind Voldemort, but before he could interfere the curse was lifted, and Voldemort took a step to the side. Severus moved again, before he could be spotted. He had to wait for the right moment, catch the Dark Lord unaware. It was his only chance.

Voldemort aimed his wand at Potter again, and the boy froze in place. Then his body was lifted a few feet from the ground, arms and legs spread wide. The wizard made the boy float to the left, and then, with a quick twist of his wrist, he sent him flying backwards towards the woods. There was a tree a few yards behind Potter, its branches wide, pointing in every direction, and suddenly Severus realized what Voldemort was trying to do. If he didn't do something to stop him, Potter would be impaled by the tree.

As fast as he could move, he ran to the side and closer to the boy, and shot a spell of his own at him, hitting the boy from a different angle, moving his floating body just enough to the left before he reached the tree.

The second Voldemort felt Severus' magic, he dropped the boy and turned to him, shooting a curse as he moved. Severus blocked the curse and turned to face him. He could see the surprise on Voldemort's expression, along with a hatred he had never seen before.

"You," Voldemort seethed, his eyes shining ruby, the air thickening with rage. Severus said nothing. "After all these years, you betray me?"

"I have not been loyal to you for a very long time," he said, his eyes fixed on Voldemort's. He would not attack yet, he would wait until the wizard made the first move.

"Then what they told me was true; you betrayed your Master for the Order of the Phoenix. But I know you, Severus Snape. I know you better than you know yourself. You are a wizard of the dark, always have been. You are more like me than you imagine. What did the old wizard do to you to make you join him? What did he promise you?" he asked, a hint of curiosity in his tone.

Severus was about to reply when he heard screams coming from the woods, and saw a few witches and wizards backing away from the trees. He thought of Hermione, wondered if she was safe, but then pushed those thoughts away and focused once more on Voldemort, who was moving his wand in a series of complicated twirls and flicks until suddenly they were surrounded by a bright green mist, a shield isolating them from the exterior, the magic so thick it even kept the rain away.

"Let us make sure no one interrupts us," Voldemort said, his wand aimed at Severus once again. "So, you were about to tell me what they did to make you turn your back on me," Voldemort said, almost conversationally.

"They did nothing. I made that decision on my own."

"Do not even try it, boy," Voldemort suddenly said, his eyes still on Severus but his attention elsewhere.

"Afraid I might use dirty tactics and attack you from behind your back?" Potter said, stepping away from the trees and walking to them with a slight limp.

"Oh, no, the Order of the Phoenix is above such dirty tactics," Voldemort said, his tone mocking, but he took a small step to the side, so he could watch them both at the same time. "Severus here was about to explain to me the reasons behind his betrayal; I have the feeling you will be as interested in this as I am, Harry."

"I don't care why he betrayed you, I just care that he's on our side," Potter said, but Severus still saw him glance sideways at him, unsure he really was on their side. Hadn't he proven himself enough times?

"You said you have not been loyal to me for a long time. How long, exactly, Severus?" he asked, curiosity clear in his voice.

"Why is that important?" Severus asked, tightening his hold on the wand. The Dark Lord was a powerful wizard, and probably a little overconfident, but he knew Severus would be a dangerous adversary, and Potter had proven to be able to handle himself well enough. Voldemort would try to play them against each other and get an advantage over them. He never did like fair fights, and wouldn't willingly risk losing to them both.

"Could it be, perhaps, that you turned to the light shortly before my first encounter with Harry, all these years ago?" Severus didn't reply, and a triumphant contorted Voldemort's face. "You betrayed me for her, did you not?"

"What are you talking about?" Harry asked, but Voldemort ignored him.

"Does Harry know you are responsible for his parents' deaths? That the jealousy you felt towards his father is what made you turn to me? It was the information you provided that sentenced her to death, why turn on me because of that?"

"You said you would spare her," Severus said, the hatred and anger long buried reaching back to the surface.

"And I might have. I even gave her the chance to live that night. All she had to do was move out of the way, but she didn't. If you don't believe me, you can ask Harry. He was there at the time, after all."

"What's going on?" Potter asked, confused. His wand was still aimed at Voldemort, but his gaze kept darting from him to Severus.

"Didn't you know, Harry, of your mother's relationship with Severus?"

"What?"

"A Mudblood, Severus," Voldemort said, taking a small step closer to them. Both wands followed his movement, and he stopped with a small smile. "You are one of the most powerful wizards I have met, or could be, and that is certainly saying something. With me, you could become much more than you are," he said, his tone soft, tempting with the promise of power. It didn't fool him for a second, and Voldemort saw it. "There is power inside of you, Severus, a dark power that could make you great, and you gave all that up for a filthy Mudblood?"

Voldemort's efforts weren't directed at him any more; he was taunting Potter, trying to distract him, or even make the boy turn on him instead. Severus hoped the boy showed more self control than he usually did.

"You see, Harry, Severus here fancied himself in love with your mother," Voldemort said. "But she thought herself too pure, too good for him. It is ironic, how she was the reason Severus turned on me, and the reason he betrayed me."

"Is your plan keeping us here all night? Talk until you bore us all to death?" Potter snapped, angrily.

"Where are your manners, boy? Didn't your mother teach you better than that?" he asked, then smirked. "I guess not."

Potter didn't reply, but his anger was so powerful Severus could feel it in the air. They stood silent for a few moments, none of them willing to make the first move. He heard noises around them, felt the magic shake as someone tried to break through the green mist that surrounded them. No one would be able to get through it unless Voldemort allowed them to, and he wouldn't. They were isolated, alone.

"You did your job well, Severus. I must admit that," he said, sounding calm, his face blank. You kept me fooled for a long time. Still, betraying me is one thing, but protecting Harry? He is a living reminder of what you couldn't have, a reminder of the witch you wanted, and the wizard she chose."

Severus tightened his hold on his wand, but didn't respond. He knew Voldemort well enough, and he wouldn't let his words affect him. He knew better than that.

"And you let him stand by your side," Voldemort said, turning to Harry. "You are willing to fight beside him after all he did to you, to your family?" Potter kept his eyes on Voldemort, but Severus could tell his self control was slipping away. "After seeing for yourself how he betrayed me, what makes you think he won't betray you too?" The boy hesitated for a moment, his gaze darting to him. Severus couldn't fight Voldemort and protect Potter at the same time. He needed the boy to fend for himself, calm enough to think. If he waited more, Voldemort might confuse him enough to make him turn on him for real. He had to act fast.

"After years of pretending, I think I have heard enough," Severus said, taking a step forward, drawing Voldemort's attention to himself. "Let us settle this at last."

"You cannot kill me, Severus. After all the years you spent as a Death Eater, you should know that. Even if you managed to harm me tonight, which I doubt, I would recover. If you killed this body, I would still return. I would provide myself with a new body, like I did before. I am beyond death, Severus. You cannot defeat me," he said, a certainty in his tone that almost made Severus smile. "You know that too, Harry," Voldemort said, turning to the boy. "There is no point in fighting, it will only…"

"The diary," Severus said, interrupting Voldemort. "The ring, the locket," he added slowly, watching Voldemort turn to him. "The cup, the diadem," he said, and Voldemort's eyes shone crimson again. He kept his tone calm, almost taunting. It seemed to be working. "They have all been destroyed."

"You lie," Voldemort said. He was trying to control his anger, to appear confident, but Severus could see through the mask. He could see the uncertainty behind his words, a shadow of doubt, perhaps even fear.

Voldemort looked at him for another second, then suddenly turned back around, facing Potter, ready to attack.

"Nagini." The word was spoken softly, calmly, but it made Voldemort freeze mid-motion.

It was one thing to take risks when you knew you couldn't really die, when you were tied to the living, and another when you knew losing would mean death for real.

Voldemort's eyes darted from him to Potter for a moment, trying to decide on the best course of action.

"Severus," he finally said, after a moment, "you are a dark wizard, and you know it. Above everything else you yearn for power, and I can give you that. Kill the boy now, and I will forgive your betrayal. You will be my second in command. I will show you powers you never even dreamed of.

Well, he had to admit, the Dark Lord was nothing if not practical. He couldn't fight them both without taking risks, so he would try to turn them against each other.

"I think not," Severus said, pulling his robes open and slowly unsheathing the long sword he had taken from Draco earlier in the woods before sending him to the Order. Voldemort's gaze darted to the sword, and then back to Severus.

"You seem very intent on keeping Harry alive," he said. "If you try to attack me, he will be the first to go." Severus merely shrugged.

"What is the matter, Harry, is our little conversation not interesting enough for you?" Voldemort asked. Potter's gaze return to them, but it was too late. Voldemort knew something else had caught his attention.

The wizard turned to where Potter had been staring, and after a second a triumphant smile contorted his lips. Before Severus could do anything to stop him, Voldemort lifted his free hand, and a body came flying through the mist and towards them, so fast it was little more than a blur of movement.

"Now what do we have here," Voldemort said, stopping the flying figure right in front of him. It was Hermione.

Her terrified eyes turned to Severus as she was placed between him and Voldemort. She was frozen in place, unable to move a muscle. A perfect shield.

"You look worried, Severus," Voldemort said, his voice soft as silk. "It cannot possibly be because of her, now can it?"

"Leave her out of this," Potter yelled, angrily, the last of his self-control al but lost.

"It is not I that has brought her into this, Harry. It is all Severus' doing," he said, his eyes never leaving Severus. "You do seem to have a thing for Mudbloods. I must admit I am surprised. After what happened to the last Mudblood that caught your interest, I thought you would have learnt your lesson. I guess I will have to kill this one, as well. I have to say, though, that the redhead was certainly more attractive," he said, then laughed loudly when he saw Harry's confused expression. "Didn't you know, boy?"

Severus felt Potter's eyes on him, but he ignored it. "What does she have to do with anything?" he asked, trying to keep his voice calm.

"Does Harry not know about you and his little friend?" Voldemort asked, turning to Harry. "My, my, Severus, you cannot take every woman from his life without him knowing. Severus here seduced your friend to gain the Order's trust back, after killing Dumbledore for me."

Severus felt Potter's accusing glare on him, but he kept his eyes on Hermione. How would he get her out of there in one piece?

"But it wasn't just that, was it Severus?" Voldemort asked, but he knew he was really talking to Potter. "You used her, yes, but I believe there is more." Voldemort watched him in silence for a few seconds, and when he spoke again, there was curiosity in his voice. "What is it with you and Mudbloods? You could have any witch you wanted, even if they didn't want you back, and yet you keep choosing filth, you keep risking yourself for Mudbloods. Did you believe this one would replace the once you lost?" he asked. "Or perhaps there is more to her than meets the eye," he continued, when Severus didn't reply. "There has to be something special about this one. Not only did she manage to trap you, she also made Draco Malfoy betray me. Perhaps I should let her live, and take her with me after I am done here. I would like to find out exactly how special she is."

"Leave her out of this," Severus said, his voice low, calm. Potter seemed to be too shocked for words.

"How badly do you hate me, Severus? How badly do you want to see me dead?" he asked, and Severus had no idea where this was going.

"I won't let you hurt her," Potter suddenly said, angling his wand and firing. Voldemort deflected the curse and shot one of his own, pushing Potter back, making him fall against the closest trees. His wand had fallen somewhere among the trees.

He had kept Hermione between them the entire time, using her as a shield, and there had been nothing Severus could do to stop his attack on Potter without risking her. That didn't go unnoticed by Voldemort.

"Not long ago, you were willing to risk your life for that boy," he said, thoughtfully, "and yet you did not help him now, and wasted the chance to attack me only because she was between us. I never would have thought you would do something like that, Severus. The Order of the Phoenix has certainly been a bad influence.

He said, nothing, but tightened his hold on his wand, his grip so tight his fingers had turned white. Voldemort was right, he should have attacked when he had the chance, but he couldn't do it with Hermione in the way. What was wrong with him? There were more important things at stake than her, or him.

"I have a little theory I would like to put to test," Voldemort said, thoughtfully, evil dripping from every word.

"What theory?" he asked, barely keeping the anger from his voice. He didn't want to know, but that wouldn't stop Voldemort from saying what he wanted to say.

"I wonder exactly how much you care about this little witch here." Severus didn't speak, he just stared at him, waiting for him to continue. Whatever Voldemort was planning, it couldn't be good. He could hear Potter moving around, searching for his wand, and he wished he could just summon it for him, but he couldn't turn away from Voldemort, not even for a second. He just hoped the boy would find it, and fast.

"You always seemed to value your life above all else, Severus. You always did whatever you had to do to protect yourself, to stay alive. We are much alike, in that way. But now you have made me wonder whether you value her life more than you value your own.

"And how would you put that theory to test?" he asked, although he had a feeling he already knew the answer.

"Easy, Severus, you will show me yourself. I will let you choose," he said. "Two curses, and enough time to deflect one. Which one will it be?" he asked.

With a speed that surprised even him, Voldemort moved his wand and did exactly what he had told him he would. He moved Hermione's body to the side, and then fired a curse at each of them.

Severus saw Hermione's eyes widen as the Freezing Charm was lifted, but she didn't have enough time to react. There were only seconds for him to make a decision, or they would both die. He knew that no matter what he chose, it would be a mistake, but there would be no regret. He looked at her and saw her looking back at him. There were tears in her eyes as she shook her head, silently asking him not to save her. Severus closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and chose her.

*

Hermione watched, helpless, as the curse flew towards her. Everything seemed to vanish from sight as the curse came closer, its light almost blinding her. She knew another curse was moving towards Severus at the same time, and all she could do was hope he would use the little time she had to save himself.

She knew that with Severus alive, they still held a chance to defeat Voldemort. She wasn't good enough to do it on her own, but Severus was. Of course, that wasn't the reason why she wanted him to live, not really. Even when so much was at stake, she could only worry about him. She wanted him to survive, wanted him to be free of Voldemort at last, free to live his own life, even if it wasn't with her.

But as the light was about to reach her she felt a wall of invisible magic materialize in front of her, the shield so powerful that Voldemort's curse crashed into it and vanished.

She screamed and fell to her knees, the realization of what had just happened, of what Severus had done, breaking her heart. Her body was frozen again, but this time it wasn't magic keeping her still, it was the pain. She just couldn't bring herself to move.

Her gaze darted to the side, to where Severus had been standing only seconds before. The sword was lying there on the ground, next to his wand, but Severus wasn't there anymore. There was a trail of fire that led to the forest, trees uprooted and burning down the path Severus had been thrown.

Then Voldemort's laughter broke the silence, and hatred deeper than she had ever felt took over her.

In one fast motion she turned and stood up, rage guiding her every move. She ran to Voldemort, aimed her wand at him and shot. He deflected the curse easily, still laughing. She fired again, and again he deflected it. But she didn't stop running. She just kept moving, and before he knew what was happening, she had ran into him as fast as her legs would take her. He hadn't been expecting a physical attack, at least not from her, and he stumbled backwards, surprised, but when she tried to turn her wand and curse him again he hit her arm hard, making her drop her wand.

But she wasn't thinking, she was just acting, and losing her wand didn't stop her. Her hands reached for his face, her nails sank into his skin, and he was startled, his reaction a second too slow. He groaned in pain when her knee connected with his groin, but then his unbelievably strong fingers wrapped around her neck, and she tried to pull away from him. His cold hand kept her at arms length, keeping himself out of reach. Her feet were dangling a few inches from the ground, using her own weight to strangle her.

Her hands flew to his, trying to rip his fingers from her neck, but his hold on her was as firm as iron. The world started spinning around her, her body going weak from the lack of oxygen. All she could hear was his cold laugh as he tightened his grip, all she could see clearly were his gleaming red eyes.

Then a voice broke through the haze, giving her a ray of hope.

"Accio sword," she heard Harry yell. His hand was stretched outwards, but he wasn't holding his wand.

And yet she felt the magic around her, heard the sword swish midair as it flew towards them, saw it sink into Voldemort's back.

Voldemort's hold tightened for a second, his eyes wide with surprise, and then blinding light shone through his skin, spreading outwards, covering everything around her.

Voldemort screamed in pain, and the light coming from him turned red. She felt the fingers on her neck burn into her skin, and she fought to free herself. His grip loosened, all strength lost, and she fell to the ground, crawling away from him as the heat in the air threatened to burn everything it touched.

And then, with one last pained scream, Voldemort's entire body was swallowed by the light with an explosion that made the very ground beneath her shake.

Then, as suddenly as it had started, it stopped, and darkness covered everything.

*

Harry was kneeling beside her, shaking her shoulders. He was calling her name, but his voice sounded so faint, so far away. She blinked a few times, letting her eyes adjust to the dim light, and Harry's face came into focus.

He was talking to her, but she couldn't make out the sounds. All she knew was that he looked worried.

There was something strange on her face, almost tickling. It took her a few moments to realize what it was. Rain was still falling, warm, cleansing.

Slowly, the rest of the world came back into focus, new voices reaching her ears. And pain, she could feel pain.

Everything hurt, and at the same time, nothing did. It was something abstract, as if the pain was just her imagination. Like something inside her had broken.

There was also physical pain, a burning sensation still lingering in her neck, and she reached her hand to touch it, but Harry stopped her.

"Don't touch it," he said, his voice sounding closer than before. He pointed his wand at her neck and muttered something, and she felt the burning faint, replaced by a strange tingling of magic.

"What happened?"

"He's gone," Harry said, his tone flat, as if he couldn't believe it yet.

She tried to sit up, but she didn't feel strong enough.

"Don't move, I'll…we'll send you back to headquarters."

She shook her head and tried to sit again, and the world went back to spinning. What the hell had happened to her?

"Help me up," she said, reaching up to Harry. He hesitated for a moment, then carefully pulled her up to her feet.

She looked around. She was still standing in the clearing, although now she was in the centre of a circle of burnt grass that seemed to go on for yards. There were figures lying on the ground, and people running between them. Some of the trees around them were on fire, and there were wizards here and there, trying to put the fire out without much success.

"He's gone," Harry said again, his hand still holding hers tightly. "It's over."

"What happened here?"

"I didn't see much. After the sword…" he hesitated. "After it happened, his body started shining, and then there was some kind of explosion. Most of the Death Eaters that were still here burst into flames, but not all. The ones that didn't burn are gone. They escaped as soon as the Anti-Apparition wards fell.

"Severus," she whispered, searching the clearing for him. Little had registered in her mind after Harry said the Death Eaters had burned to death. Had Voldemort's curse killed him? And if not, had the flames consumed him alive, killed him in such a cruel, painful way? "Where is he?" she muttered to herself, but Harry was standing right next to her.

"What is it?" he asked, a hint of anger in his tone. "Why do you care about him?" But she didn't listen, didn't care that he was speaking. Nothing mattered to her anymore. Just the thought of Severus being dead consumed the last bits of strength she had left. She couldn't move, couldn't talk, couldn't hear. All she knew were the memories of their time together, the images that kept flashing through her mind.

She felt Harry's hand let go of hers, felt him walk away to the other witches and wizards, probably to help them. She knew she had lost many friends, she had seen many of them die right in front of her, but those losses were a dull pain compared to the loss of Severus.

It took her a few moments to realize she had started walking. Her feet were taking her away from the clearing, and even though she wasn't in control of the movements, she knew where her body was taking her. Down the path Voldemort's curse had thrown Severus. She had to know for certain, had to see it for herself. Whatever had happened to him, she needed to know it.

The grass on the ground was burnt in an almost perfect line, leading her deep into the woods, and she followed it without a glance back.

She found more bodies along the way, but a quick glance told her none of them were Severus, and she kept walking.

Suddenly she heard a rustle of leaves, someone moving, and a voice, soft, barely audible, and she hurried her step. She felt a tingle of magic in the air, and then heard a pained groan. She walked faster, and the voices grew clearer. She stopped.

There were two wizards there. One was standing, facing her and helping the other wizard to his feet. The first wizard was Remus. The second one had his back to her, his figure almost hidden as he leaned weakly against a tree. She didn't need to see his face to recognize him. It was Severus.

Time seemed to stop as she stood there. Remus saw her first, and he froze in place, surprised. Then Severus followed Remus' gaze and slowly turned, and her knees bucked beneath her as she saw him.

His eyes met hers, and he seemed as relieved to see she was alive as she was to have found him. She stepped forward, her eyes on him as she moved, until she was standing inches from him.

Most of his robes were burnt away, but the skin beneath looked smooth, unharmed. Her gaze travelled down his arm; the Dark Mark was still there, in a way, but now it was just a pink line, like an old scar, that still held the same shape as before.

She reached her hand forward, fingers trailing the new lines, and he let her. She could feel his gaze on her, but he didn't react or speak; he just watched her.

"He's really gone," she said, looking up into his eyes.

"He is."

"I thought you were dead."

"I would be, if Lupin hadn't found me."

She turned around, but Remus was gone.

"You shouldn't have let him curse you," she said softly. He looked at her in silence for a moment, then took a step back.

"You should return to your friends."

"Why?"

"The Dark Lord is dead. I am free of him now, and so are you. We don't have to pretend to be together anymore." She should have been angry at his words, or hurt, but something in his eyes stopped those feelings.

"After all these years, you are free of him at last," she said, her eyes searching his for a hint of what he really felt. "You can be free of me, too, if that's what you want."

"You shouldn't be with me," he said. "You have your entire life ahead of you. You could do anything you wanted."

"What if this is what I want?" she asked, moving closer.

"It's not."

"I'll leave if that's what you want."

"The Death Eaters that survived will come after me, you would be in danger," he said. It sounded as if he were trying very hard to find reasons to push her away. She wouldn't give up so easily. "It would be…"

She didn't let him finish. She grasped the front of his robes and pulled him to her, and he didn't stop her. She kissed him softly at first, tentatively, but then he wrapped his arms around her, deepening the kiss, and she felt her body melt into his. After everything that had happened, just being in his arms made her feel safe.

An eternity later, or so it felt to her, he pulled back, and his fingers tilted her head so that she was looking up at him. The rain was still falling on them, washing away the blood, the fears, the doubts. As she looked up into his eyes, she knew she had made the right decision. She wanted to be with him. At that moment, after everything that had happened, that was all she cared about.

Without saying a word, he took her wand from her hand and used it to summon his own wand from the clearing. Then he took a Portkey from his pocket, and tapped it with the wand. It shone bright for a moment, and she knew he had just changed its destination.

He reached his hand out to her, the Portkey lying on his palm in a silent offer. He watched her calmly, gave her a chance to change her mind, but she held his gaze and smiled.

She leaned forward and kissed him again, then pressed her hand to his, and let the Portkey take them away.

She didn't know where the object would take them, but she didn't care, as long as he was with her.


	65. epilogue

Just a quick note before we begin. Chapter 64 was posted just three days after 63, and some might have missed it, so please make sure you read the end of the story before reading the epilogue :D

Now on to the story

* * *

Hermione closed her eyes and tilted her head forward, letting the hot spray of the shower hit her back and shoulders. She found baths much more relaxing than showers, but there wasn't enough time for one, so the shower would have to do.

She had been feeling more and more nervous as the day of the ceremony grew closer. It was the first time she would see her friends in months, and she just couldn't help but wonder how they would take the changes in her life. She was happy with the way things were, mostly, but still she hoped they would understand, or at lest accept, her decisions.

She was so distracted by her thoughts that she only realized someone was in the bathroom when she heard the shower door open.

"I'll be right out," she said, shaking the thoughts away as she turned around and reached for the tap, but a hand on hers stopped her.

"No need to leave," a deep voice said, the voice that could still so easily turn her legs to jelly. "There is more than enough room for two."

"Are you sure?" she asked, leaning back against him as he stepped into the shower.

"Indeed," he said, leaning down to kiss her shoulder. "You are too tense," he whispered into her ear.

"Can't help it," she mumbled, closing her eyes to focus on the feeling of his skin against hers.

"Well, perhaps I can," he said, turning her around and leaning down to kiss her.

It was like magic, like he had bespelled her with just that one kiss. Suddenly everything else was forgotten as she wrapped her arms around him and her body melted into his.

She responded to his kiss eagerly, letting her hands trail down his body, her fingers tracing every scar on his flesh, stopping on the newest ones, the ones Voldemort's curse had left on him, when he had sacrificed himself to save her.

"Stop thinking," he said, as he had many times, reaching for her hands and pulling them away from him. He walked her back then, until her back hit the wall, the contrast between the cold tile and the hot water making her shiver.

She felt his hands moving up her thighs as he kissed her, felt his fingers move between her legs, teasing her in the most delicious way.

"Severus," she moaned against his lips, arching her body against his, silently begging for more contact.

She wrapped one of her arms around his neck, pulling him to her while her other hand reached between them. She heard him gasp when she wrapped her fingers around his erection, then moan softly as she started moving her hand up and down, feeling his fingers move inside of her with the same rhythm.

She could hear him breathing heavily against her neck, could feel his hips rhythmically pushing against her hand, ever so slightly, as he tried to keep control. He twisted his fingers inside her, searching for that magical spot inside her body, as if he wanted to make her lose control instead of losing it himself, as if it were some kind of competition. She couldn't say she minded, though, not one bit.

But then again, she had always been competitive, and she loved winning.

She tilted her head to the side, searching for his lips as she tightened her hold on his erection, squeezing just enough to make his breath catch and his hips jerk against her hold.

"Stop that, or I won't last," he moaned into her ear, his words pushing her even closer to the edge. She loved the fact that she could make him lose control. She didn't want to stop, but he wrapped one of his hands around hers, pulling it away from him while his other hand kept moving inside her, his thumb rubbing against her clit in a way he knew drove her wild.

Her body tensed as her orgasm built, and when he bit that sensitive spot on her neck she lost it. Her vision blurred as her body shook with pleasure. He tightened his hold on her as her knees gave way, held her as she rode her orgasm, his lips sealed on hers, drinking every sound, every moan, until her body finally calmed.

She rested her head back against the tiled wall as she tried to catch her breath, loving the look of desire in his eyes as he watched her, so raw, so primal. With a wicked smile she licked her lips and reached between them, wrapping her hand firmly around him, like she had before.

"I told you to stop that," he said, reaching down as well and pulling her hand away.

In a blur of motion he shoved her arm to the side, moving his free hand to her shoulder and turning her around, catching her around the waist before she lost balance, so that she was now facing the wall, her back to him.

"You have to learn some obedience, I believe," he whispered huskily against her ear, as he pulled her a step away from the wall, his erection pressed firmly against her back. "But now is not the time."

He pressed his hand against her back, making her lean forward and rest her hands against the tiles for balance, then pushed himself inside her without warning.

"Fuck," he rasped, giving her a moment to adjust before pulling back and pushing inside her again. She wondered for a moment how it could always feel so good to have him inside her, how sex with him could feel so amazing, every single time, but then his pace quickened, and all train of thought was lost.

One of his hands moved up her back, reaching for her hair and pulling her back for a deep kiss, while the other hand moved around her, cupping her breast, twisting her nipple just enough to make her cry out in pleasure.

"Fuck, witch, so fucking good," he cursed against her ear, thrusting deeper and faster, pulling her body back against him to meet his every thrust.

Before she knew it her body was tightening again, the sensations quickly building up, and his hips were moving faster, losing their rhythm. She was close, so very close, and he knew it.

He pinched her nipple as his other hand moved between her legs, stroking her clit with just the right amount of pressure to push her over the edge.

"Come for me, witch," he rasped against her ear, thrusting erratically into her as her muscles tightened around him, pulling him over with her.

She rested her forehead against the wall, giving her body time to calm down. Severus' chest was still pressed against her back, and she could feel his body rise and fall with every breath he took.

She was still feeling light-headed, and it took her a moment to realize his hands were roaming her body again, caressing her slowly, teasingly. He knew every sensitive spot on her body, and he used that knowledge every chance he got.

"Severus," she sighed, feeling him pull her hair to the side, and she tilted her head, giving him free access to her neck.

Her mind had started clearing, but his ministrations would quickly cloud it again. She only had a few moments to decide if she would stop him or let him continue. The second option was entirely too tempting, and she knew it, but they had to stop, at least for now. There would always be time for more later.

"If we don't hurry we'll be late for the Celebration," she whispered, but his hands kept teasing her body, his teeth kept nibbling on her neck, and she arched against him, her body wanting more of what he was giving her.

"There's more than enough time," he whispered back, turning her around and pulling her flush against him, and she knew his body would soon be ready for more.

"I don't want to be late," she said, kissing him one more time and then forcing herself to step away from him and out of the shower, missing his body as soon as the contact broke.

"I don't see why you are so eager to go," he said, following her into the bedroom. Water dripped to the floor as he walked, but he didn't seem to notice or care.

"You know why I want to go," she said, opening a drawer and pulling out some underwear. "I haven't seen my friends in almost five months, Severus."

"It wasn't safe for any of you, with Death Eaters still at large," he said, walking to her.

"I know, but we will be safe there. Everyone will be at the Ministry, and I need to be with them."

"No, you don't," he said, nuzzling her neck. "You could stay here, instead. I'll keep you entertained," he whispered into her ear, and she couldn't stop the smile that reached her lips.

He had been trying to convince her not to go to the Celebration ever since the invitations had arrived, and he wasn't above using dirty tactics.

"You don't have to come if you don't want to," she said, and felt him stiffen slightly behind her.

"Ashamed to be seen with me?" he asked, but there was no anger in his voice, he was too busy touching her, trying to distract her. Too bad that she was as hard-headed as he was.

"You know that's not why I said it."

"But they still don't know about us. How do you think they will take the news."

"It was your idea not to tell them, not mine, Severus."

"True, but if you go alone, how will you explain this?" he asked, splaying his hands over her swollen belly.

"I think it's rather self explanatory," she said with a small smile. "Not that I have to explain anything to them," she added, moving her hands on top of his and threading their fingers together.

To say the pregnancy had come as a surprise would be an understatement. They had both been so foolish to let it happen, him for assuming she was using some kind of birth control, her for assuming that, if he hadn't mentioned the subject, then he was probably taking care of it himself. It had been a foolish mistake, especially for two people as smart as they were, something neither of them should have let happen, but it had happened, and now she couldn't bring herself to regret it, and after the first shock at finding out, she knew he didn't regret it either.

That night was the six-month anniversary of Voldemort's defeat, and she was six months pregnant, to the day. Not everything that had happened that night had been bad.

But none of her friends knew about the pregnancy, they didn't even know she was with Severus, although some of them might suspect the last. Remus probably did, and perhaps Harry, too, but they had said nothing to the Order, and she was thankful for that. She wanted everyone to know, but she and Severus had decided against it, mostly because Severus feared if one of the Death Eaters still free found out about them they would try to get to him through her, and he wasn't willing to take that risk.

Rogue Death Eaters were, in fact, the reason why she hadn't been able to see any of her friends in over five months. A few weeks after the final battle a Death Eater found out Harry was planning to leave headquarters for a few hours to meet with her and decided to track him down and kill him. She and Harry had been lucky to escape alive and in one piece, and since then all she got were a few letters a month telling her the news.

Harry had tried to convince her to stay at headquarters with and a few other Order members more than once, but she had told him she wanted to spend some time with her parents. It wasn't entirely a lie, she really was spending some time with them, but she was living with Severus.

She couldn't wait to see Harry and the others again, but at the same time she couldn't help but fear their reaction when they found out where she had been the last few months, couldn't help but worry about what they might say or do when they found out she was living their hated Potions Master. And pregnant, don't forget the pregnant part.

Things were difficult enough as they were, without outsiders frowning upon them. She had never been in a real relationship before, and Severus was used to living alone, so it was a big change for the two of them. At first they had stayed at his house mostly for security reasons. He was sure she would be safe there.

The situation had changed so gradually she wasn't sure when exactly she had stopped _staying_ there and started _living_ in the house, thinking of it as home. They had never discussed it, it had just happened.

That was the way most things happened between them, right from the beginning. There was rarely need for words, and neither of them were good at speaking of their feelings anyway, so that was fine. They had never sat down to discuss their relationship, how they felt about each other, but why do that when actions spoke louder than words?

"You look worried," Severus whispered into her ear, bringing her mind back to the present.

"Maybe a little," she said, with a small smile.

"Why don't you stay and relax, then?"

"I can't."

"I could make you stay," he whispered huskily, pulling her back against his chest and turning them both around so they were facing the bed. "I could tie you to that bed and make you forget everything else," he whispered against her neck, his lips touching her most sensitive spots and making her moan softly.

"You could, but you won't," she said, enjoying the feeling of his body so close to hers. "Why don't you want us to go?"

"What do you think will happen when your dear friends see you with me?"

"It's none of their business who I'm with."

"They'll probably think I put you under the Imperius Curse."

"Probably," she said, laughing, "but they will be wrong."

"They will not accept this, and if they cannot make you change your mind, they will push you away."

"You don't know them like I do," she said, trying to sound more certain than she felt. She turned around and locked her eyes on his. "It might take them a little time to get over the shock, but they will understand. They will see I am happy, and accept it."

"And if they don't? I'm warning you, witch, I won't let you get away," he said, and she couldn't help but smile at his words. She leaned closer to him and kissed him softly for a moment.

"If they don't accept it, then that's their problem, and not mine. I am where I want to be," she said, against his lips. "You will not get rid of me so easily, Severus Snape."

She knew he wasn't worried about himself. He couldn't care less about what anyone thought of him. He was afraid for her, worried they would reject her for being with him, even if he could hardly stand any of her friends, and she loved him for it.

"Will you come with me to the Celebration?" she asked, and he nodded. "We better get dressed, then, or we'll be late for real," she said, giving him one last kiss before making her way to the closet.

*

They Apparated to the Ministry of Magic together. They were only a few minutes late, but the main hall was already deserted. There was only one wizard in the room, behind the security desk, so they walked towards him.

"How can I help you?" the security wizard asked in a bored voice.

"We are here for the Celebration. We-"

"Invitations," the wizard interrupted in the same tone, and she handed the small cards to him before Severus had time to make any comment. The security wizard was being rude, but being rude in return would get them nothing, so she just let it pass. There would probably be enough rudeness once they got to the Celebration.

The security wizard took the invitations, inspected them closely, and then looked up at her and Severus for a second, narrowing his eyes. "You are late," he finally said.

"And we will be even more so if you keep staring at those cards like an imbecile and do not let us through," Severus said briskly.

"Is there any problem with the invitations?" she asked quickly, trying to sound amiable while throwing Severus a dirty look.

The wizard looked at them for another moment, probably wondering if it would be wise to respond to Severus' insult. He seemed to decide against it, because after a few seconds he finally tapped each invitation with his wand once and returned them.

She quickly reached forward to take her invitation back, but the instant her fingers touched the card the room around her seemed to swirl, and suddenly she found herself surrounded by people. A second later, Severus appeared beside her, holding his own card but looking not the least bit surprised.

She blinked a few times, trying to adjust to the sudden light. They were still in the same hall, but now the entire place shone brightly, the ceiling charmed to look like the sky on a sunny day, the magic so good she could even feel the sun warming her skin.

There were a few hundred people standing in front of them, all of them facing towards the Fountain of Magical Brethren. The Minister for Magic stood next to the fountain, reading out loud the names of the witches and wizards that had died in the battle.

She felt Severus move to stand right next to her as the Minister read the last name. They shared a minute of silence in memory of those that had died, and then the Minister waved his wand towards the fountain. The statues that had been there moments before vanished, replaced by a large, golden column that reached all the way to the ceiling. She could see the column was engraved, but she couldn't make out the motif from where they were standing.

As the crowd began to disperse, small, round tables appeared around the room for everyone to sit, and a few long tables with drinks appeared by the wall. There was also a band now, in front of the fountain, playing soft music that barely carried over the voices.

"Ready?" she heard Severus ask, as the crowd started splitting into smaller groups around the hall, the voices quickly growing louder. She turned to him and saw he was looking at something to their left. She followed his gaze and saw Harry and Ginny walking towards them. "If they behave as the dunderheads they are, I will have no other choice but to curse them," he muttered, his face expressionless but his tone almost teasing.

Her gaze went back to Harry and Ginny, who were looking at her curiously. She moved her hand to the side, reaching for Severus', and he took it, but kept his expression cold as he watched her friends walk closer to them. It had always amazed her just how much he changed when he let his guard down, and the fact that she was probably the only person to see him like that made her feel special. She didn't care what others saw in him. What did it matter, if she knew what was really there?

She saw the expression on Harry's face change, his gaze falling to their joined hands, and he hesitated mid-step, but Ginny pulled him forward, oblivious to what was happening. Hermione wondered for a moment if perhaps she should have let Severus talk her into staying home, but she was a Gryffindor, after all; she would be brave. Besides, they would have to find out, sooner or later. The Ceremony seemed as good a time as any.

Harry's expression had gone from a broad smile to a frown when he had seen her holding Severus' hands, but when his eyes fell on her belly he froze on the spot, his expression so confused she almost fell sorry for him. The robes she was wearing fell rather loosely around her body, but not enough to hide the fact that she was pregnant.

She felt Severus squeeze her hand lightly, and she squeezed back. He leaned closer to her and whispered into her ear, "We can still leave, if you want," but she just shook her head and kept her eyes on Harry, wondering what was going through his mind.

"Hermione, hi," Ginny said, as she reached them. She had recovered faster from the shock than Harry had. "Professor Snape," she added, and he gave a curt nod. "It's good to see you, after so long." She was trying to sound casual, but Hermione could tell she had been as surprised as Harry.

"Yes, good to see you at last," Harry said, stepping next to the witch. "Looks like you've been busy," he added, his eyes going from Severus to her belly and then up to her face.

"Harry!" Ginny whispered, sounding appalled, but Harry didn't seem to hear her, or to care.

"It's good to see you, Harry," she said, doing her best to keep her tone even.

"I'm sorry," he said, after a moment, as if only just realizing what he had said before. "This is just a little sudden."

"I know."

"How did this…" he trailed off, as if not sure how to voice what he wanted to ask. Finally, he settled for, "Is everything all right?"

"Yes," she said, trying to put into that word how she really felt, trying to tell him she was fine, that she was happy.

He sighed, his gaze going back to her belly. "It's just a bit of a surprise. A big surprise, actually."

"I know," she said, unable to think of anything else she could say to make things easier.

"Boy or girl?" he asked suddenly, and she couldn't help but smile. He seemed to be taking it a lot better than she had expected.

"Don't know, yet."

"When will it be born?"

"I still have a little over three months to go."

Harry took a deep breath, then smiled. "I guess that means I still have a little time before I have to start looking for toy broomsticks."

"Oh, Harry," she said, closing the few steps that separated them almost at a run and throwing her arms around his waist, hugging him tightly. She felt him hesitate for a moment, but then he hugged her back.

"You should've told me sooner," he said into her ear.

"I wanted to, but I couldn't risk any Death Eater finding out."

"Still."

"I know," she said.

"Are you sure it's Snape's?" he asked, and she pulled back to look at him. His face was expressionless, but she could see the teasing glint in his eyes. "What? I want to be sure, maybe there's still hope, and this is not as bad as it seems."

"Be nice," she said, only half teasing, and he nodded.

"Come on, everyone's been asking about you, they will want to see you," he said, turning around and walking to the other end of the hall with Ginny.

She turned back to Severus, smiled and reached her hand out to him. His expression was still blank, but she could tell he had relaxed. She waited until he took her hand, then whispered, "Hard part's over," as they both followed Harry across the room.

She stopped for a moment as they walked past the fountain, and she leaned closer to the golden column, trying to see what was engraved in it. Right there, in the main hall of Ministry of Magic, were the names of everyone lost in the battle, for the wizarding world to know and remember. Her eyes searched the surface for a moment, searching for all the familiar names she knew would be there, but then Severus pulled her forward and she followed. She didn't need to see the names to remember those that weren't there any more; she wouldn't forget even if she tried.

Harry and Ginny had stopped by a table near the wall, and everyone there had turned to her and Severus. By the look on their faces, Harry had already broken the news. They all stood up as she and Severus moved closer and greeted them warmly, congratulating them on the baby. Some still looked shocked, but they didn't seem angry, which was a lot more than she had expected.

They talked for a few minutes, the main subject her relationship with Severus and the pregnancy, but they thankfully kept their questions to a minimum. Slowly they began dispersing, moving on to talk to other people, until the only one left was Charlie, who couldn't really just walk away.

"I think I have suffered through enough pointless conversation for one day, I shall go get a drink. Would you like me to bring you something?"

"No, I'm all right," she said. She actually was a little thirsty, but one drop of any liquid and she would have to start making trips to the toilet. Oh, the wonders of pregnancy.

"Good to see you again," Charlie said, as she sat down next to him.

Charlie's legs had been badly hurt when the dragon had crushed him, and the magic in the dragon's blood had interfered with the healers' magic, so they'd been forced to let his legs heal the Muggle way, at least until the dragon's magic faded away.

"How are you doing?" she asked.

"They've finally taken the wheelchair and given me crutches, though they're not as easy to use as they look, I can barely move on my own, yet."

"I'm sorry."

"Why? If it weren't for you I wouldn't be moving at all," he said with a smile, then changed the topic before she could say anything else. "So, you and Snape, huh?"

"Yes," she said, not sure of why she was suddenly blushing slightly.

"So how's that going for you? Hard to imagine him in a relationship, but if you're good with it…" he said, with a shrug.

"I am."

"So, how did your parents take it? The Snape thing and the pregnancy? And congrats, by the way."

"Thanks. They took it quite well, actually. They were a bit shocked about the baby at first, but they got used to the idea quite fast. Now they're just delighted at the thought of being grandparents. As for Severus, well, can't say they minded. He saved their lives and mine, and they believe he'll take good care of me. In my mothers' eyes he can do no wrong," she said, with a small laugh. "I'm sorry," she added quickly, when she saw the pain flash through Charlie's eyes.

"No need to be," he said.

"How's your dad doing?"

"He misses Mum, we all do," he said sadly. She reached forward, taking his hand in hers.

"I'm so sorry."

"It's okay," he said. "Now that Bill and I are out of St Mungo's he spends all his time in Ron's room."

"Is there any news on him?"

"The healers say he's doing much better, but the healing is still slow. They are hoping he will wake up in a month or two."

"I wish I could go see him."

"It's not safe yet, especially in your condition, but you know we'll tell you if something changes," he said, squeezing her hand lightly.

"I know," she said.

"I think someone wants to talk to you," he said.

"What?" she asked, confused by the sudden change of topic. He motioned to the side with his head, and when she turned in that direction she saw Draco standing a few tables away, looking at her.

"I think I should-"

"It's all right, go," Charlie said. "He's been trying to contact you for days now."

"It's been good to see you," she said to Charlie, and he smiled in return.

"Go," he said, with a smile. She nodded and got up, slowly making her way to where Draco was standing.

"Hi," she said, as soon as she was close enough.

"Hello."

"I hadn't expected to see you here, I thought you were still at the hospital."

"I was. I am," he corrected. "I had my healer release me for tonight. I wanted to see you."

"Draco, if you're not well you shouldn't leave-"

"I'm just fine, see?" he said, spreading his arms to the sides.

He did look all right, but she knew he probably wasn't. There were no visible marks on him tonight, but she knew the truth. She had visited once at the hospital, a few days after the battle. She had seen the deep slashes across his chest and arms, the marks his father had left there when he had tried to kill him. She also knew those cuts weren't the worse of his wounds, but the magic that had been used to make them.

"I'm all right, I promise," he insisted, his face serious, and she nodded her head, deciding to drop the issue.

"I'm glad you're doing better," she said, the only thing that came to mind. She had thought facing Harry would be the worst she'd have to do tonight, but she hadn't expected to see Draco. She had no idea what to say, now.

"So, I can see things have changed since the last time I saw you," he said, his eyes flicking to her stomach.

"I guess they have," she found herself replying. What was she supposed to say?

"How far along are you?"

"Six months."

"Exactly six months?" he asked, and she knew he was thinking about what had happened exactly six months before.

"Yes," she replied. What else could she say? "I never got the chance to thank you for what you did that night."

"There's nothing to be thankful for."

"You saved many lives that night, Draco, including mine."

"I should have killed my father when I had the chance, but I didn't, and I almost got you and myself killed. There's nothing you need to thank me for."

She took a step forward and reached for his hand. "You saved my life. You saved more lives than I can count. Severus told me you destroyed the last Horcrux. Without that, we would never have defeated Him."

"And still it wasn't enough," he said softly. His free hand reached for her, but he stopped himself before he touched her belly. "We would have been so good together," he whispered, almost to himself.

"Maybe we were just not meant to be," she said, not sure how to make him feel better.

"Maybe," he said. "But why him?"

"I guess love knows no reason," she said, with a small smile. Merlin knew she hadn't expected to end up with Severus, but she couldn't think of a better life.

"You love him."

"I do."

He took a deep breath, but he wasn't surprised by her words. He knew how she felt about Severus; he was probably the only one besides the two of them that understood.

"Are you happy?"

"I am."

"Well, I guess in the end that's the only thing that matters."

He tightened his hold on her hand as his fingers moved to her cheek.

"Maybe next lifetime," he said, with a sad smile on his lips. Without another word he let go of her hand, turned around and left.

She watched him walk away, not sure what to do, trying to decide whether she should go after him or not, but what could she say to make him feel better?

"I think we have been here long enough, wouldn't you agree?" Severus' voice startled her, and she turned around to face him. He was looking over her shoulder, watching Draco walk away.

She had already seen her friends, and they already knew what she had come to tell them. They knew she was with Severus, they knew she was pregnant. There was nothing else keeping her there.

"I think you're right," she said, and his eyes darted to her, clearly surprised by her answer. "I think it's time to go."

"Are you sure?"

"I can think of a few things I'd rather be doing," she said suggestively, and saw the heat cross his eyes.

"Shall we?" he asked then, offering her his hand.

"Please."

They started making their way away from the crowd, trying to find a safe spot to Apparate, when someone called her name. Severus groaned in frustration, but she turned around to find Remus walking hurriedly towards them.

"Hi," he said, when he reached them.

"We were just leaving, Lupin, so if you have nothing important to say…"

"I was hoping I'd get to talk to you tonight," Remus said, ignoring Severus' comment. "I haven't had a chance since the battle."

"You're right. How are you?"

"I'm fine, I actually-"

"Remus," someone called from the crowd, interrupting him.

"I'm here, Dora," he said, and after a moment they could see Tonks walking to them.

"I thought we were leaving," Severus said, but she just squeezed his hand and smiled at the witch.

"Wotcher, Hermione," said the witch, beaming at her.

"Hey Tonks, how've you- Oh, my God!" she gasped.

"What, you thought you were the only one?" the witch asked, her smile getting bigger, if possible, as she moved her hands to her own belly, that seemed just as big as Hermione's.

"I didn't know, I-"

"Of course you didn't, you haven't been around in a while," said the witch, taking Remus' hand and pulling him to her. Tonks saw the surprise on her face and laughed hard.

"I didn't even know the two of you were together."

"I could say the same thing."

"Well, congratulations, Nymphadora, Lupin. Let us hope the studies claiming Lycanthropy to be an hereditary condition are inaccurate," said Severus, smirking when he saw Remus pale. "Now, if you don't mind, we were just leaving," he added, pulling Hermione to him.

"Of course, well, I just wanted to thank you, Hermione, since I didn't have the chance until now."

"Thank me? For what?"

"If it weren't for you, Dora would have died that night."

"Yes, well, I could say the same to you," she said, glancing at Severus.

"I guess that makes us even," Remus replied, with a smile, as he pulled Tonks closer and rested his hand on her belly. "Thank you."

"Thank you," she said.

"If what you wanted was to thank her, Lupin, you could have sent a card," Severus said, in a tired tone, although she knew he was thankful, too. It had been his life, after all, that Remus had saved. He would just never say it out loud. "Now if that's all…"

"Yes, that's all. It's been good seeing you, Hermione. I hope we will have a chance to talk, soon," he said, in his usual gentle tone.

"Me, too," she replied, then watched them turn around and walk back into the crowd. "There was no need to be rude."

"I thought you said there were other things you would rather be doing than staying here," he told her, pulling her to him. His eyes searched the crowd for a moment, as if to make sure no one was looking, and then he leaned down to kiss her. She had expected a quick kiss, almost chaste, since they were in public, but instead he kissed her heatedly, pulling her flush against him and instantly making her forget everything but him. "I can think of a few of those things myself," he whispered against her lips. "Unless you have changed your mind and would rather stay here for a few more hours of incessant and pointless chatter."

There would be time to talk to all of them, time to catch up on what had happened in the last few months, but for now she had told them everything she needed to. She could think of nothing better than going back to the house and reminding Severus of his earlier offer to tie her to the bed and make her forget everything else.

"Let's go home," she whispered against his lips, kissing him again as he Apparated them both away.

Who would have thought that foolishly following Death Eaters one afternoon would lead to this? Who would have imagined Gryffindor's golden-girl would fall in love with the head of the Slytherin house, their dreaded Potions Master? Certainly not her.

Perhaps it wasn't how things usually happened; it was certainly nothing like what movies showed, but what did that matter? She loved Severus, and he loved her back. What else could she ever ask for? She had what she wanted, what she needed. Everything else was irrelevant.

* * *

AN: Yes, you can believe it, after over two years of hard work this story is finally and officially COMPLETE!

Well, it's been a really long ride, and I know I'll really miss both the story and the reviews (can't tell you how much I loved every one of them, even the not so good ones)

So again, I'd like to thank you all for sticking with me all this way, 65 chapters is a lot, and I'm glad you made it this far! And of course, a special thank you to every one of you who took the time to review and let me know what you thought of my story.

Last, but certainly not least, a HUGE thank you to Nicole, for her beta work, and to Lupinswolfie, for helping me so very much in every aspect of the story. Love you!!

I really hope you enjoyed the story, and the epilogue, and one last time, don't forget to leave a review and let me know what you thought!!

PD: Needless to say, you'll be hearing more from me, I'm working on quite a few stories, including another SSHG one I will be posting soon (I posted the first chapter in my lj - lilmisblack(dot)livejournal(dot)com - so if you want a sneak peak, you know where to go. It's a friends-only post, but if you want to read just friend me and I'll friend you back right away)


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